What To Believe?

There is significant disagreement within the left as to where blame for the invasion of Ukraine should lie. A faction insists Putin's prime motive was NATO expansion, another sees the imperative of energy markets and Capital accumulation as central. Could both be correct? Could it have been a convergence of intersecting power plays? Then there is the liberal explanation whereby Putin is driven by mystical imperial designs and historical ethnic grievances. Certainly the NATO explanation is the simplest, perhaps explaining its poularity. To unravel the relations between Gazprom and the Russian state and Europe - not to mention US LNG and Chinese interests- takes an expertise in international relations few possess. I guess I could also throw the US "defense"/ arms industry into the mix because there is plenty of profit to be made there. Does it really even matter in the final analysis? Its all capitalism in crisis, whether it's the breakdown of the regulatory order and alliances or the breakdown of the trading system and financial flows. It is reminicent of the debates following the attacks of 9/ 11. The instinct is to find solidarity with victims and seek perpetrators to blame. Seek the simple answer that supports a logic you already understand. Which can lead to all kinds of bizarre, uncorroborated speculation. The bottom line, as we will witness with the upcoming COP negotiations, is that Capital has no answers to the climate crisis and capitalism can't deliver on its promises of peace or prosperity.