+ Queen Elizabeth's reign US Edition - Today's top story: Unexpected Ukrainian resistance continues to thwart Russia's initial plans for quick, decisive victories [View in browser]( US Edition | 8 September 2022 [The Conversation]( As a career U.S. special forces officer, Liam Collins has a unique vantage point on the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. He was part of an American military team that helped train Ukrainian soldiers after Russiaâs 2014 attack on Ukraine and Georgia. As such, Collins is well-placed to explain why the widely projected view that an overpowering Russian army would force a quick capitulation of Ukrainian forces didnât happen. Instead, [stiff Ukrainian resistance and massive amounts of Western military aid have tilted the balance](, leaving âno end in sight,â he writes. The resistance and counterattacks have caused Russian forces to slow and even halt some of its advances. The reality on the ground is forcing Russian President Vladimir Putin to learn a valuable lesson. âWar is often much longer and costlier than anticipated,â Collins writes. Howard Manly Race + Equity Editor
A Ukrainian soldier inspects a residential building after it was damaged following a Russian shelling attack In Kyiv. Mykhaylo Palinchak/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images
[Unexpected Ukrainian resistance continues to thwart Russiaâs initial plans for quick, decisive victories]( Liam Collins, United States Military Academy West Point Despite having superior military forces, Russian President Vladimir Putin has found Ukrainian resistance much tougher than expected. A West Point military expert looks at the future of the war.
Shirts for sale on Jan. 6, 2021, combined loyalty to Jesus and to Donald Trump. Joyce Dalsheim
[Christian nationalism is getting written out of the story of January 6]( Joyce Dalsheim, University of North Carolina â Charlotte; Gregory Starrett, University of North Carolina â Charlotte Thousands gathered to express their collective identity and desire to preserve the nationâs political and religious heritage â and to uphold what they saw as the rightful outcome of the 2020 election.
Overconfidence about their political knowledge is common among Americans. FXQuadro/iStock/Getty Images Plus
[Americans think they know a lot about politics â and itâs bad for democracy that theyâre so often wrong in their confidence]( Ian Anson, University of Maryland, Baltimore County Many Americans think they know much more about politics than they really do. That overconfidence can thwart democratic politics. -
[Queen Elizabeth II: a moderniser who steered the British monarchy into the 21st century]( Sean Lang, Anglia Ruskin University Elizabeth II was a safe pair of hands for the British monarchy in a turbulent and changing era. -
[America is in the middle of a labor mobilization moment â with self-organizers at Starbucks, Amazon, Trader Joeâs and Chipotle behind the union drive]( John Logan, San Francisco State University Public support for unions is at a near 60-year high. Meanwhile, self-organizers at major American chains are spearheading a new movement to mobilize. -
[Police response to 5-year-old boy who left school was problematic from the start]( Elizabeth K. Anthony, Arizona State University A lawsuit against police and school officials for how they responded to the kindergartner has been settled, but deeper systemic issues remain. -
[Wounded souls: 75 years after Indiaâs Partition, survivorsâ trauma has still not been recognized]( Sanjeev Jain, National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences, Bengaluru, India Effects of violence and forced migration on survivorsâ mental health have not been acknowledged, despite the trauma being passed down generations. -
[When tragedy becomes banal: Why news consumers experience crisis fatigue]( Rebecca Rozelle-Stone, University of North Dakota Whether it is the war in Ukraine or other devastating news, people find it hard to sustain their attention. A scholar who studies crisis fatigue explains why that is so and what we can do. -
[Supreme Courtâs selective reading of US history ignored 19th-century womenâs support for âvoluntary motherhoodâ]( Lauren Thompson, Kennesaw State University The womenâs rights movement in the 1800s did not openly support legalizing abortion or birth control. But the reasons why are complex. Like this newsletter? You might be interested in our other weekly emails:
[Science Editors' Picks]( • [This Week in Religion]( • [Weekly Highlights]( [The Conversation]( Youâre receiving this newsletter from [The Conversation]( 303 Wyman Street, Suite 300 Waltham, MA 02451 [Forward to a friend]( • [Unsubscribe](