Before I jump into the Russian invasion, I think some things need to be defined.

I am an advocate of a semi-deterministic universe. What this means is that I think that using cause and effect we can determine what a response to stimuli will look like. This works really well when we are able to observe both the cause and effect within a reasonable amount of time. This gets difficult the longer the timeline becomes. The causes and effects of events that happened 100 years ago are extremely difficult to attribute. Expanding upon that idea, if the origin of the universe is the first “Cause” then in a deterministic universe, we are the effect. The reason I say semi-deterministic is because I don’t believe the future is 100% written, I think there is a probability of an infinite amount of futures that can unfold and that the actions and decisions that occur in every moment of the smallest resolution of time are what steer the future state of the universe. Time is unfolding in the present moment as we experience it, and the sooner we embrace this reality the sooner we will be able to prioritize the future existence of the human species within the universe.

Along with the above semi-deterministic universe, I think free will is an illusion, but with mindfulness and meditation, I believe we can steer ourselves in such a way that improves our lives and the lives of others by interrupting the thoughts arising from our output of actions. Without mindfulness and meditation, we run on autopilot, grounded in egocentric trauma responses that we’ve learned from the environments that we’ve been exposed to. These are the natural responses to stimuli that a person will have if they aren’t aware of their thoughts.

With that said, here’s what I think the Russian invasion of Ukraine is leading us to. Climate change is moving faster than we’d predicted, likely due to some of the optimistic spin we like to put on things to have the problem appear as though we can manage it. Due to the progression of larger and larger temperature swings occurring, large portions of populations closest to the equator in Asia are not going to be livable. Perhaps people will be able to survive, but I would say those are the exceptions and that the dominant number of the population will have to migrate North.

Russia has not been a nation that would be on the list of places to migrate to for many. We can see that in their immigration numbers and their regression of population since the 1990s. North America and European nations not eh other hand are all desired locations for those looking to start a new life. Its hard enough to decide to uproot your family, heritage, tradition, and the vision of what you had as your future to move to an unknown country, so having any concept of ideology that embraces your individuality and protects your rights to tradition, religion, and values is very important. Russia, in its current form, doesn’t do that today.

The Russian invasion has drawn a line in the sand between those value systems. Russia’s leadership is attempting to hang on to an ideologic place in time that no longer exists in this reality and by doing so, they’ve unplugged themselves from the international community and there is no going back. Playing this out with either outcome of a successful invasion or a foiled attempt leaves them ostracized. If they successfully take over Ukraine, they gain land but they can’t do anything with it. Sure they get oil reserves, but they can’t export it, they can’t buy nice things or import luxury items. There will be no way for them to access international markets, besides the five or so countries that they influence, but are hardly booming economies. So what’s next? Do you think that the citizens will just bow to their installed leader and that there won’t be a rebellion? This won’t ever end, and Russian leadership will soon not be able to afford to continue paying troops to fight for them or supply them with weapons to combat a rebellion. Sure there are short-term fixes like getting one of those other countries to help out, but that’s not sustainable for months on end, let alone years. At some point, the well dries up and Ukraine will come back because they will have continued support from the entire collective of western democracies. Then with the inertia that built up from that, western democracy will overtake Russia and democracy will be installed.

This new Russian democracy will allow the people of Russia to decide what their quality of life looks like, and how to treat the international community. This is the change that needs to occur to create space for the billions of people that will need to flee the southern portions of Asia. This mass migration is inevitable, and Western Nations are not prepared to manage the influx of Billions of people, But Russia needs them. They need a giant boost to their economy, not just financially, but the economy of ideas and critical thinking, problem-solving, intellectual property, engineering, and sustainability. The temple of tradition is topping to make room for a new generation of inclusivity, opening, and sharing with the world. Actual participation in the international community rather than just posturing for their agenda.