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Despite the ease with which it is to see that Russia is the aggressor and sole cause of this shameful invasion of a sovereign country and has committed horrific war crimes (targeting civilian hospitals, schools, maternity wards, daycare centers, etc.), and that this simply continues an oppressive pattern to try to subjugate, or barring subjugation, extermination, not only of Ukraine but nearly all of it’s smaller neighbors, some in the Western World have bizarrely supported Russia, either through words or actions, or both.
The range of shame is broad. Some are merely fringe famous, lost, conspiracy theorists, like rock turned country musician Aaron Lewis of the pop-rock band Staind (popular in the early aughts).
Others, are more famous, such as Roger Waters of the famous rock band Pink Floyd.
Of course, there are numerous far-right politicians such as Matt Gaetz, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Troy Nehls, Rand Paul, Tim Burchett, Marsha Blackburn,… the list is long, too long. You will notice that almost all are on the right (though it must be pointed out that right or left, the majority of U.S. elected officials are supportive of Ukraine).
Trump and MAGA influenced politicians were behind the brutal six-month aid delay package from November of 2023 until April of 2024 when Speaker Mike Johnson REFUSED to bring the aid package up for a vote, despite there being ample votes to pass it. Finally, in April, when I was there in DC at the Ukraine Action Summit, Johnson magically had a change of heart (he said he'd read a CIA report. It took him six months to read it? Come on man) which some credited upon religious fervor, to which I call bullshit. If bombing innocent children is wrong in April 2024 it was wrong in November 2023. I digress.
Yet despite this fact you will find some Ukrainians believing that Dear Leader, 45 and 47, was re-elected to deliver them a swift victory "within 24 hours." This is, I am convinced wishful thinking and a bit of Stockholm Syndrome at work. Some people love strongmen more than democracy and some Ukrainians are not immune to this. Others are simply desperate to hang on to some hope. I get that. So am I. But I refused to refute the evidence in front of my face (aid delay in 2023-24, Zelesnsky blackmail in 2019, etc.). The evidence is clear that Trump is not a friend of Ukraine but is most definitely a friend of Russia. I call it Trump = Yanukovych. I hope I'm wrong. I doubt I am. Time will tell.
And then there are companies like Hugo Boss, who are still doing business in Russia, content with making blood money.
And there are others, Ukrainian-Americans, like NYC Council Member Inna Vernikov, a Trump fanatic (of course) who may be the worst of all. Pretending to support her ancestral homeland and fighting for its very existence, while simultaneously aggressively putting forth propaganda and disinformation emanating from the far right that keeps support for Ukraine from the United States being bi-partisan (and famously brandishing a gun at a Pro-Palestinian rally in NYC).
What motivates these folks? I’m not sure. Some, such as Aaron Lewis, are so far down conspiracy rabbit holes that they can no longer discern right from wrong, truth from fiction, etc. Propaganda, after all, preys on the fragile minds most.
Others, such as far-right politicians, are simply doing what too many (but certainly not all) in politics do, seeking more power, regardless of the cost. They likely never had much of a moral compass to begin with.
And then there is also greed. That is where Hugo Boss and companies still operating in Russia come in. And perhaps Joe Rogan. Are rubles being exchanged? Just ask the Tenant Media folks of Franklin Tennessee after they were busted by the FBI for creating videos for Russia in exchange for $100,000 a video. I am pretty sure there are more than just these folks doing Russia's bidding.
Who will bust folks like this under a Trump administration?
In the end, it’s a result of a dangerous cocktail of arrogance, ignorance, and propaganda much like the Ukrainian government observed of Elon Musk after he once again tweeted out some ignorant point of view from his ivory tower on high.
But for the shameful folks that we all interact with daily, we may never know what motivates everyday Americans to fall in line behind Putin’s attempt to hijack democracy worldwide. I do know there is a fair amount of ignorance as well as entitlement involved (it’s easy to glibly pontificate about another country’s fight for freedom when you feel safe and secure in a freedom you neither deserve nor earned). But it's also propaganda. We're ALL being influenced in ways that we are not aware as Russia has become masters of exploiting the soft underbelly of democracy, free speech, to peddle disinformation and propaganda disguised as discourse. We all must be smarter. That's why it's important to see our EDUCATE section and watch some of the videos about Russian propaganda.
This is one reason this site exists: to offer people ways to learn about Russia’s history of attempting to subjugate Ukraine and other parts of the world (Georgia, Syria, Moldova, Chechnya, and now the United States and the EU) with their cynical ideology, propaganda and brute force. And hopefully better understand the risk it entails for even a country like the United States, whose democracy has been teetering since Russia’s infamous 2016 election interference and successfully doubling down in 2024.
The Hall of Shame Page’s mission is to call out those destined to be on the wrong side of history and document their atrocities for all to see. In some cases, I create videos to call these folks out (see below).
If they apologize or see the errors in their way, we will report. But it is very important that people understand their actions and words have consequences and we are keeping score.
If you know someone who should be in this Hall of Shame, let us know who and why. Sadly, it’s a long list and getting longer.
