What Do You Do With a Man Called Putin?

Putin’s Chilling Antics

Putin’s recent military incursions into the Ukraine, exhibiting as they do a terrifying similarity to Hitler’s invasion of Poland prior to World War II, have put the entire Western World on edge.

President Obama seems at times at a loss of what to do (despite the fact that he has more flexibility after the election), and Putin seems to be running circles around everyone with his deceptions.

What is a nation to do?
What is the United States to do?
What is NATO and the European Union (EU) to do?
How do we avoid provoking World War III, yet help and defend the hundreds of Ukrainians who are dying for freedom right now?
How far will Putin dare to go?
What does Putin want?

When In Doubt

When in doubt, ask an expert.
Ask someone who has been there, who has done that.
In this case, ask Lithuania.

Lithuania

Lithuania might be a small nation, but it has a record of strength, determination and success that is matched by few.
Lithuania was the first nation to revolt against Soviet control in 1991, when the dissolution of the Soviet Union began.
Since then, Lithuania has grown it’s economy, prospered, joined the European Union, joined NATO, has headed the European Union, and is adopting the Euro in 2015.

Lithuania is the mouse that roared, the David that slew Goliath.  Or Mighty Mouse!

This amazing success was recently recognized in The Economist, and was recognized by President Obama as well.

Got Putin’s Number

Lithuania knows well the ex-Soviet giant which enslaved her for 50 years, and under whose shadow Lithuania has managed to achieve the remarkable prosperity described above.

The long-feared risk that Russia could use energy as a political weapon has encouraged Lithuania to come up with  energy alternatives. Lithuania has long been preparing for tactics from Putin such as those being used in the Ukraine today.

Not only has Lithuania allied herself with Western nations politically and economically, but by 2015, Lithuania will also have the potential for complete energy independence from Russia, which supplies the bulk of Europe’s energy needs.

So Lithuania not only has Putin’s number, but Lithuania knows how to anticipate Putin’s thinking and how to strategize in self-defense.

Comrade Putin

Vladimir Putin was an intelligence officer for the KGB prior to the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Later, he became head of the Federal Security, an arm of the former KGB.
When the Soviet Union was dismantled in 1991, it is doubtful that Vladimir Putin was instantly transformed from master of KGB espionage (political, economic, military-strategic and disinformation-based) into magnanimous defender of truth, liberty and freedom.

Lithuania knows the tactics Putin is familiar with, understands the psychology of the KGB, and has demonstrated a success record in defeating the giant out of whose shadow Lithuania has emerged.
Lithuania has not only emerged from the shadow successfully herself, but works to offer the same opportunities to other nations.  Upon joining the UN Security Council, to the dismay of Moscow, Lithuania embarked on discussing the Ukraine.
Lithuania has courage.

Lithuanian Ambassador in Madison

Lithuania’s ambassador to the United States, Žygimantas Pavilionis,  just visited Madison last week, to honor the 25th anniversary of Madison’s Sister City relationship with Vilnius, Lithuania’s capital.  Madison was the first city to form Sister City ties with Vilnius.  Madison did this during Lithuania’s struggle for independence, one year before Lithuania declared independence from Soviet domination in 1991. So Madison is a very special friend to Lithuania.

Ambassador Zygimantas Pavilionis

Ambassador Žygimantas Pavilionis gave a seminar at UW, and was guest of honor at a Madison-Vilnius Sister Cities banquet at the Madison Club, which we were fortunate to attend. Ambassador Pavilionis was interviewed by Mary Jo Ola at Channel 3000 News:

Ambassador Pavilionis calls Putin’s actions in the Ukraine “the convulsions of the KGB in the Kremlin” which are destined to fail because the “corrupted KGB regime is afraid of it’s own people… it is afraid the same revolution will happen in the Kremlin… Being occupied by Soviets for 50 years, we (Lithuanians) know that it doesn’t work.  If the people go to the streets, if fear is disappearing, that’s the end (for Soviets). … Putin is making a strategic mistake.”

Sanctions? – Ambassador Pavilionis does not think that sanctions will be enough.  We will have to support Ukrainians by military means, because unfortunately, Russians will go to the line we draw.  But at the same time, we  also have to be strategic, we have to say whether the EU will accept the Ukraine as a member state, whether NATO will be enlarged to the east, and if we don’t have that strategic clarity, those autocracies or corrupted powers, they will just be moving forward.  We have to stop them.

Soviet tank crushing peaceful Lithuanian demonstrators, 1991

Ambassador Paviolionis has been involved in the government and development of Lithuania since the freedom-fighting days, when Soviet tanks crushed Lithuanian freedom demonstrators under their tracks.  He is a fan of Ronald Regan and of Saint John Paul the Great, who together facilitated the dissolution of the Soviet Union.

Lithuanian Ambassador in Washington

Ambassador Pavilionis lives in Washington, D.C., in the second oldest embassy building in Washington, which has housed a Lithuanian ambassador and flown a Lithuanian flag  for 90 years.  The embassy was maintained and the Lithuanian flag was flown, at times without funds and without heat,  throughout the 50 year Soviet occupation of Lithuania.  The United States and the Holy See were the only two places in the world who completely recognized Lithuania during the Soviet occupation.

This Lithuanian embassy is 2.5 miles, or 9 minutes away from the White House.  So when it comes to consulting on what to do with Putin, where should President Obama go?

Lessons on Putin-Handling

Lithuania is the mouse that roared, the David that slew Goliath, even better, the Putin-whisperer.
So what do we do about Putin?
Consult Lithuania.
It takes a Lithuanian to stand up to Putin.

Syte Reitz encounters Vlad Putin in London at Madame Tussauds

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Above All, Pray!

St. John Paul the Great Praying at Lithuania’s Hill of Crosses, 1993

 Apsaugok, Aukščiausias, tą mylimą šalį,
Kur mūsų sodybos, kur bočių kapai!
Juk tėviška Tavo malonė daug gali!
Mes Tavo per amžius suvargę vaikai.
-Maironis

(See free Lithuanian Rosary mp3s, on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, 12-8-16)

 Small show of solidarity :600 American Troops sent to Lithuania:

We were privileged to meet and speak with Ambassador Pavilionis:

Tom Reitz, Syte Reitz, Zygimantas Pavilionis, Rolf Reitz
Madison Club, Madison, WI

Education in Lithuania:

Business in Lithuania:

Syria Explained – the New Politics
or
Mixing Politics and Prayer

To Separate or Not to Separate, Church and State?

While Presidents and lawmakers have no power or right to impose a specific religion or set of beliefs on our nation (try as they might, as Obama is presently doing with secularism and with socialism), individual citizens would be remiss if they failed to consult their code of ethics before voting or before supporting a particular political candidate or policy.  And that code of ethics is, in all probability, derived from their religion.

Hence, in a democratic republic composed of 80% Christians, the law will be, and the law ought to be, based on Judeo-Christian principles.  Not by decree, but democratic determination.  Also by choice of the Founders, who unquestionably founded this nation on Christian principles.

Christian Morality Undermined

Recent attempts to undermine this foundation by those who argue separation of Church and State have been misguided.  Separation of Church and State is not defined as prohibition of public discussion of what is right and wrong, but is defined as refraining from imposing a forced set of beliefs on citizens – whether those be Lutheran, Catholic, Muslim, or atheist beliefs.  Our determination not to jail a person for not sharing our Christian beliefs is not to be confused with our right to legislate ‘thou shalt not kill’ and ‘thou shalt not steal’ by a majority vote, and to encode these values into our laws.  And when citizens do encode their Christian values into law, as in the case of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), it is not for politically motivated, unelected, appointed “judges” to reverse the will of the electorate by decree.  To allow a minority to dictate the lives of the majority is foolhardy, and represents a misguided definition of tolerance.

Grass Roots Reclaim Morality

Now, as a nation,  we are suffering the results of our previous misguided “tolerance” of things we know to be wrong – of lying, of killing, of abuse of power by the elite.  And now, the people of the United States are beginning to take matters back into their own hands.  They are getting more involved, and they are participating in the democratic process with renewed vigor.  They are not afraid to demand ethical solutions to pressing problems.  Examples can be seen in recent successes of the Pro-Life movement, the Tea Party movement and in the 2 Million Biker ride taking place in Washington DC today.  Despite attempts by those in power to steer our nation in a less democratic and less Christian direction, ordinary citizens are waking up and are taking charge.

Religious Leaders Call the World to Public Prayer

This awakening and new-found activism, in addition to including political action, also includes prayer.  In the United States, 80% of people pray, and say that their prayers are answered.  So it would be logical to pray about the the things that are important.  Catholics have been participating in organized prayer efforts for religious freedom frequently during the past year. Catholics are centrally organized and thus may be more visible, but they are not alone.  Americans of all faiths have been praying and have been becoming more active in politics.  The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) has become more outspoken, and the Pope has become more outspoken.

The USCCB has called for numerous Freedom of Religion rallies across the United States, and Catholics have gathered to pray for the restoration of religious freedom which was violated by the HHS Mandate.
Catholics in Madison, WI, started praying the rosary en masse every week on the Wisconsin State Capitol Steps in 2012.
For the first time in history, Pope Francis called for a Global Adoration effort, in which millions of Catholics participated on June 2, 2013.

Syria

Now, in the face of the Syria crisis, Pope Francis called for a Global day of Prayer and Fasting for peace on Saturday night, September 7th. He wrote a letter to Putin calling on G20 leaders to seek Syria peace talks, and tweeted against a US military strike in Syria. Millions participated in the global vigil, with 100,000 people gathering for 5 hours of vigil and prayer with Pope Francis in St. Peter’s Square.  The rosary was prayed.

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So, Are We Surprised?

Within two days of the global vigil involving millions of people, we went
FROM:
Obama pushing military strikes, Syria vowing retaliation on Israel,  Iran vowing revenge and threatening

to rape and kill Obama’s daughter, US Senators saying we could be nuked if we don’t play this right, and Russia announcing that she would shield Syria from US attack,
TO:
a gaffe made by Secretary of State John Kerry (aka “Lurch”), picked up by Putin, who took advantage of Kerry’s blunder to demand that Syria surrender chemical weapons, to Assad agreeing to surrender chemical weapons, to Congress, including the Democrat-contolled Senate backing off approval of Obama’s proposed military strikes, to Obama speaking to the nation and announcing that everything is on hold.

No military action, no political plan, no battle, no delegation needed.  Most surprising, with the most unlikely players.
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From the brink of World War III involving the U.S., Syria, Iran, Israel, and Russia, to a defused situation and Vlad (Putin), the knight in shining armor, moralizing at Americans in the New York Times.

The hand of God in human events is most obvious in those events which defy the laws of probability, in those events which accomplish far-reaching, perhaps even global results, where human effort seems to play little or small part in accomplishing the result, and in those events where politicians and battles play no significant role.  Nobody anticipates the result, everyone is surprised by the result, the result is truly remarkable, and no fingerprints are left behind.
That is God’s style and His trademark.
…………………………………..-from The Missing Link- Redefining How We Approach Politics

This week’s events in Syria illustrate one clear case of God’s such involvement in human history.
When we pray and work against all odds, God helps.
And He usually does it in an unexpected way and with a great sense of humor-
Putin, the peacemaker, to the rescue, calling on the Nobel Peace Prize President Obama not to trigger World War III.

No Rose Colored Glasses

Make no mistake, the story is not over.
The idea of trusting Syria or Russia, and numerous other complexities and hurdles still have to be considered.
But the bottom line is that three days ago we were almost bombing Syria against the will of the people of the United States, and now Barack Obama has called for a pause.
I, for one, have certainly breathed a sigh of relief.

Thanks be to God!

 Future Plan

Quoting from  The Missing Link – Redefining How We Approach Politics, in which this new approach to politics, politics from an educated religious perspective, was outlined:

Related Posts:

The Missing Link – Redefining How We Approach Politics

Pope Francis Takes On Obama

Political Puzzle Pieces Falling into Place

Enjoying the Progress? Join the Prayer

Global Adoration- Say What?