Witness what needs to be witnessed
+ The big pandemic what-ifs, The peace Russia could afford, Spotify spam (#386)
We're three weeks into this terrible war waged by Russia. I have, again, tried to pick a few articles for you that help understand the current moment and where we're headed (along with other topics we should not lose sight of, and a few lighter pieces to give your mind some rest).
Before we get to this week's recommendations, some ideas on how to follow what's happening in Ukraine.
- For a daily, in-depth update, I still think the BBC's Ukrainecast is the best.
- Ezra Klein has had some of the foremost experts on Russia on his podcast, and will probably keep doing so. For additional context, these are excellent.
- Meduza is one of the last independent Russian outlets, in dire need of money to keep going. Worth supporting.
1. 'Why? Why? Why?' Ukraine's Mariupol descends into despair
⚠️ Content warning: graphic images and descriptions of violence • It's the details: Inhabitans of besieged Mariupol toss bodies into mass graves as fast as they can, to minimize the risk of being killed themselves. A lot of what you're about to see and read in this report from inside Mariupol is unfathomable, unbearable. It made me think of something I learned from philosopher and former war journalist Carolin Emcke: Journalism is about bearing witness, giving a voice to those who can't speak for themselves. The reporters of the Associated Press took great risks to witness what needs to be witnessed.
![](https://storage.googleapis.com/afs-prod/media/51030d9888f3411e9f702ee4029d5288/3000.jpeg)
2. What If This Is Just the Way Things Are Now
«We don’t leave crisis mode; we just move from one (or more) primary sources of crisis into the next.» This essay captures what most of us are currently feeling — have been feeling for a while — and points to the all-important question: «How do those of us with the privilege to be merely shocked actually put in the work that helps protect those who are, and have been, afraid?»
![](https://cdn.substack.com/image/fetch/w_1200,h_600,c_limit,f_jpg,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fbucketeer-e05bbc84-baa3-437e-9518-adb32be77984.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F726474e3-5f77-403b-9724-cb241c86cb2c_2448x1224.jpeg)
3. How Millions of Lives Might Have Been Saved From Covid-19
Looking back at 2.5 years of Covid, and imagining the counterfactual, we see how, at various points, this pandemic could have taken a different turn. Zeynep Tufekci examines four big What-ifs:
- China tells the world the truth and the pandemic is avoided.
- The world sees through China’s deception and takes action.
- Officials put in place effective and early mitigation strategies.
- Vaccine supply ramps up, with sensible distribution.
![](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2022/03/11/opinion/11Tufecki-image/11Tufecki-image-facebookJumbo.jpg)