Amidst the constant attacks on Ukraine's power grid and water/sanitation plants, life has become difficult for the people. Having power 4-5 hours at a time in freezing winter conditions is not only a war crime, but in fact the use of a weapon of mass destruction. The truth is that the war situation has become so dire for putin and his army of orcs, that he is taking a huge gamble by shooting almost all of his missiles to try and force Ukraine to submit to his will. He has weaopnized the cold of winter against the entire population of Ukraine, and no matter how hard the government and doner nations fight and help to restore the power, millions are none the less suffering every night.
This is not to say that Ukrainians are even 1% leaning towards defeat or surrendering, as despite what putin may think, Ukrainians know how to survive in the cold. Our people have had to deal with it for centuries of conflict from all sides, and no one is in any kind of mood to give up. From my study of history, this is having no greater impact towards forcing our surrender than the terror bombing of British cities by the Nazis had on the people of Britian during WWII. It only strengthens one's resolve to fight for the homeland, for our people.
That is what it is really all about at the end of the day; the people to the left and right of you - the strength of people will to resist enslavement, rape and murder at the hands of a brutal oppressor bent on dominating you. For us the cold of winter very much fits the mood, and in addition to making live hard for the fighters on the front lines, it is the old and young who suffer the most. The cold bites hard even if you are prepraed and determined to endure it.
While I now sit in America, it is easy to become angry about the situation at home, and to be filled with dread over how my brothers and sisters in Ukraine are suffering right now. I can feel the anger in their voices, but also the steadfast determination that is a hallmark trait of our people. If the russians think that the people of Ukraine will ever submit to domination and cultural annihilation, then they live in an impossible fantasy world whose only possible outcome is failure.
For those who have watched any of the russian talk-show reels, you will know that russians are programmed to think that absorbing Ukraine and annihilating Ukrainian culture is a good outcome, and the government should push even further into bordering nations like Lithuania, Latvia and Poland. This is not the end-result, but only the beginning of putins designs on the world in his quest to rebuild the soviet empire. For the western world to allow that to succeed would imperil the next several generations of freedom-loving people around the world.
Without the strength of our partner nations and their people supporting us, the nation of Ukraine would already be gone from the map of the world, and our people would be subjected to the largest physical and cultural genocide since the Holocaust of WWII. For those of you reading this from those nations, you should feel great pride in helping us. Not only are you stopping russia from annihilating our people and demolishing our country, but you are also helping to stop the spread of dictatorships and their inhuman methodologies from spreading even further into the world of the free. You are part of those holding the line, and your continued support from the smallest donation to modern military hardware really matters.
This war will end as all wars do. Everyone taking part in it from social media to charity organizations to support groups to the troops fighting on the ground, sea, air, space and cyber, they (and you) will forever hold the pride of standing together against the greatest evil of our time. For Ukrainians there is no other choice but to pursue victory and win our 1991 internationally-recognized lands and the people in them back, or face the end of our existence as a people. I apologize for all of us if we sometimes sound mad or get angry in conversations right now - it is very difficult for the people, and we still desperately need your help in all possible ways to win this war and force russia back into their borders for good.
Slava Ukraini!
Team OneFist, Cerebrus OSINT, IT Army of Ukraine
