Stalemate?

By undertaking the previously unannounced visit to Kiev, Biden has made an aggressive move on the chess board--endangering a powerful piece. In this case, not a castle, knight or queen but himself. The trip was strategically as well as symbolically important sending a message of unwavering commitment that even Republican stalwarts like Lindsay Graham applauded. The general view is that the Russians are losing and left using their only asset, manpower. Untrained draftees are summarily thrown in a human wave against the Ukrainian positions, in the hope that the Wagner group will be able to exploit a moment of weakness. Thusfar this hasn't worked.  However stalemate rather than victory still appears to be the only way to characterize this battle of attrition. When a chess player realizes there's no way out they tip their king. If the war were a game, what would be the equivalent gesture? With the Chinese on the verge of ramping up support for their ally, there doesn’t appear to be any prospect that Putin will resign, but what will be the boundaries of the stalemate?

read "Donald Trump Plays Chess With Death" by Francis Levy, HuffPost

and listen to "War" by Edwin Starr