3/24/2022

My Dear Friend & POTUS, JRB,

            How is Brussels? Is the Mannekin-Pis statue still wearing his mask?

            It looks like you & the NATO crew are having a productive meeting – being face-to-face without masks must help in the trust building enterprise. I wish women were better represented in the group. 4 out of 30 is better than 0 out of 30 but no where near what it should be.

            I noticed that you spoke with Estonia PM, Kaja Kallas, before the family photo. I like the fact that she is front & center in the NATO family photo. Did you see her piece in today’s NYT? She opines, “at the heart of the (Russian) machine is oil & gas.” She proposes drying up that revenue. I think that’s a great idea, but it will require that we all stop using so much of the stuff.

I wish the NATO crew would tell the world that the root cause of this war is our addiction to oil. Russia would not have the military strength it does if we were using alternative energy sources. Please start sharing that message & don’t cut oil taxes so Americans can keep driving their gas guzzlers. This war might be just the jolt we need to break our habit.

It’s too bad that Madeleine K. Albright’s passing is overshadowed by the NATO meeting. I love her quote that Heather Cox Richardson shared today, “The act of striving, is in itself the only way to keep faith with life.” Her story is uplifting & a reminder that refugees make this country great.

Speaking of which, thanks for your pledge to accept 100,000 Ukraine refugees. Please add 100,000 Myanmar refugees to that pledge.

BYBS,