Ty's Topics

Social media has played an unprecedented role in the nearly nine months since Vladimir “Pootie-Poot” Putin gave the order for Russian troops to invade Ukraine. First-hand accounts, photos, and videos of the atrocities Russia continues to commit have poured in across Facebook, Twitter, Reddit, and more. Never before has the entire world had access to this type of real time information of an ongoing war. Ukraine’s President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has become a living legend as he leads the fierce resistance of the Ukrainian peoples. Ukraine has held their own thus far, with no small amount of credit being owed to Zelenskyy’s side making strategic use of the information gleaned from social media posts.

Dr. Jeffrey Lewis, an open source intelligence officer expert and professor at Middlebury Institute, tweeted on February 23, “According [to] @googlemaps, there is a ‘traffic jam’ at 3:15 in the morning on the road from Belgorod, Russia to the Ukrainian border,” with accompanying screenshots. On February 24, Russia began its invasion, moving through Bucha, towards Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine. Despite being outmanned and outgunned, the citizens of Ukraine united to protect their homeland and freedom and, using guerilla tactics, were able to repel the initial invasion.

Pictures and videos from those living through this nightmare began to spread quickly from the very beginning. In a video shared on Twitter by user “Horesmi”, a Ukrainian man can be seen carrying a landmine off of the road with his bare hands, not to mention he does so while puffing a lit cigarette. With a simple, clever caption of “least brave Ukrainian”, this video is aimed at Reddit, and specifically the subreddit r/UkraineConflict, Boosting Ukraine’s morale, while lowering that of the Russian troops by insinuating that removing mines with your bare hands is a breeze for Ukrainians.

Frustratingly, countries wishing to back Ukraine have not been able to supply actual troops in an official capacity. Thanks to social media posts of the horrific acts Russia continues to commit have inspired people from all over the globe to take up arms and travel to Ukraine to help defend against Russia. According to the Kiel Institute for the World Economy, 40 countries have sent aid to Ukraine in the form of military equipment, as well as financial and humanitarian assistance. You can see a better breakdown of the Kiel Institute’s research and graphs here.

Russia has clearly been growing more worried and violent due to the aid Ukraine has been receiving by making more and more threats of nuclear retaliation. This, to me, is the most terrifying possibility in this war that humanity should hope to avoid at all costs. Unfortunately, Russia is well aware of the global fear incited at even the threat of using nuclear missiles, making it their most useful bargaining chip to keep other countries’ involvements to a minimum.

As a retired military veteran myself, I have had a particular interest in this war as it has been conducted unlike anything I have currently lived through. While constantly monitoring the flood of information has caused me a fair amount of anxiety, I have also found an amount of relief and comfort in having access to so much information. I know I am not alone in desperately hoping for this war to come to a swift end and for Putin and his officials to be held accountable for their war crimes against Ukraine.

That being said, I can’t help but to be amazed at the information provided on sites like Reddit, which have provided specific areas for people to share their firsthand information and evidence of the war as they’re unfolding, like the subreddit r/UkraineConflict. No matter how the war ends, the old saying “history is written by the victors” will forever be changed. I believe history will reveal this to be one of the most intimately documented and disseminated wars, thanks to the civilians, combatants, and victims. Slava Ukraine!