This was the second CT Forum I have attended, and was very different from my first. Earlier this year I saw Jon Batiste talk about his life and works, and sing us a lullaby, and this time I heard Admiral James Stavridis and Anne Applebaum talk about how bad the US government is, and how screwed the entire world is about to be. That said, I thoroughly enjoyed the event, learned a lot, and left with a lot to think about, and a small bit of optimism to go along with all the problems the US and the World faces in the future. I was blown away by how good of a speaker Admiral Stavridis was, and how it felt like every single line out of his mouth was something you'd find in huge bold text throughout an article. The guy had such smart things to say, and said them so artfully, while being easy to understand.

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One big thing they talked about was the Russia-Ukraine conflict, and where it's going. I thought it was interesting how they said Putin failed a long time ago, and has already lost the war, it's just a matter of time. I also found the Admiral’s proposed solution to be a very interesting, realistic, and promising one. Ukraine would lose 20% of their land, but have guaranteed safety and sovereignty over the remaining 80%. They would have put in place a track for Ukraine to join NATO in the future, and enforce it by saying if Russia breaks this treaty, Ukraine joining NATO would be the leverage. Additionally, rebuilding infrastructure in Ukraine is a massive undertaking that would cost lots of money, so more land to Russia comes with some obvious complications. Expanding on Russia and Ukraine, they talked about how important global stability is for small countries, and the shift away from colonialism. This issue is relevant because Russia invading Ukraine for simply existing is scary, and means political borders on maps don't carry a lot of weight. When a superpower doesn't recognize another country, with less power, who's to say they won't just move in. That's one of the inherent global problems behind this war, and that fear is seen in other places like Hong Kong, Taiwan or Palestine to name a few.

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The other big thing that was discussed was the shutting down of USAID, and how “sinister” it is. They proposed this as a show of force to other government programs to make sure they do what Trump wants, which I think is a pretty legit read on the situation. The Admiral also used an extremely good metaphor to compare soft power and hard power. He said USAID is like eating good healthy food, and sleeping well, and is low energy, low cost, and has great results down the line. Hard power, or essentially military interventions, is like surgery, it's costly and messy. By shutting down USAID, there will be consequences later on, and there won't be any clean solutions. 

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Overall, the Forum also brought up a few large, less specific ideas, like how the world is always paying attention to the US, even when the US is not paying attention to the World. This is really important to remember. They also mentioned how European nations, or sort of Europe as a whole, is challenging to be the new world leader, and take the top spot in the world order while the US seems to be in shambles. I can't remember who said it, but one of the two speakers said Trump foreign policy in a nutshell was like an IED. Not an improvised explosive device, but an isolationist, erratic, and divisive government that is not afraid to cross lines.