Choices and Consequences
As individuals and societies, we make many choices. The question is are we willing to be accountable for them.
To live our lives we must make choices. Often these choices are simple- vanilla or chocolate, turn left or right. Other times these choices are more complex, filled with considerations and possibilities. In the end, they are still a series of simple choices that resolve to a final yes or no decision. This is similar to the Boolean logic computers use to process information- a series of zeroes and ones wherein true or false choices lead to the next choice. Such complicated decision-making requires assessing potential outcomes and making preliminary decisions before arriving at a final conclusion. Risk assessment is an example of this.
The process is important, of course, but more significant in terms of human behavior, whether we are discussing an individual or an entire nation, is how we deal with the consequences of our choices: Do we accept responsibility for a decision? Do we learn from the results? Are we self-aware enough to analyze our choices and admit to ourselves when we’ve been wrong? While it seems to be a feature of human nature to believe we are right in our ideas or feelings- even in the face of evidence to the contrary- experience tells us this is not realistic.
Let’s look at some examples.
Faced with an absence of an easy victory after he decided to invade neighboring Ukraine (a bad choice), Russian President Putin has resorted to brutal and terrifying attacks on civilian targets. He issued ominous threats of the consequences if other countries- meaning the United States and/or its NATO allies- were to get actively involved in the war. His initial calculation was the Western allies would not step directly into the conflict to aid the Ukrainians. He was informed in this belief by the Western reaction to his past behavior in Chechnya, the former Soviet republic of Georgia, and in Syria, and his annexing of Crimea from Ukraine in 2014. He apparently believed that he would not face serious consequences for Russia’s aggression.
For the West led by the Biden Administration, the objective is to find a way to push back against the Russian attack without risking a wider European war. One decision was to use harsh economic sanctions to hit Russia and its oligarchs where it hurt, in the wallet. It was understood that a result of these measures would have a negative impact on the global economy- higher oil and food prices, for example. The choice was to accept that risk with the goal of weakening the Russian economy.
Another choice the US and NATO made was to not acquiesce to calls to enforce a “no-fly zone” over Ukraine. The fact is the Russians are not dominating the airspace and their bombardment of civilian areas is being mostly made by missiles and artillery. The likely effect of having NATO planes over Ukraine is encounters with the Russians. The US has made it clear that neither it nor NATO will be put itself into a situation where our forces face off directly against the Russians and risk a wider war. So the choice at this time is there is no simple way to mitigate the suffering of the Ukrainian people.
That is the consequence we must accept until circumstances change and other choices are made.
This war has also allowed us to see individuals take responsibility for their decisions. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, a former comic actor, is authoring his own profile-in-courage by refusing to leave Kyiv even as he acknowledges the Russians have marked him for assassination. His leadership has inspired millions of Ukrainians, many of whom have taken up arms to resist the Russians. Even Petro Poroshenko, who lost his Presidency to Zelensky, has publically declared his support for his former opponent.
Are there any American politicians we believe would make similar choices?
Taking responsibility does not seem to be prevalent among certain segments of this country. When many of the January 6 insurrectionists were arrested, they whined about conditions in jail and complained they’d been duped by Trump and his cronies. They seemed reluctant to admit they made a bad choice. Likewise, politicians who have praised Vladimir Putin in the past are having an apparent change of heart or loss of memory: it’s “Vladimir who”? when asked about the Russian President.
I could go on and extend this list to the anti-vaxxers who fall victim to Covid, to those who refuse to accept the result of the 2020 election, and all those who make ill-considered choices and end up in denial. Instead, I offer very basic guidelines: Consider as many factors as you can before making a decision; whatever the outcome, accept it and move on; And always learn from your mistakes by owing them. To paraphrase 18th-century French philosopher Claude Adrien Helvétius: “Man is born ignorant; to remain ignorant is not only stupid but takes some effort.”
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