ROTARY'S UNRELENTING PASSION FOR SERVICE

On February 23, 1905, when Chicago attorney Paul Harris and three of his business friends met in a small office "to create a club of professionals and businessmen for friendship and fellowship," nobody anticipated that this small gathering would ultimately bloom into the most prestigious service club in the world. Over the years Rotary, so named initially to recognize its rotating meeting locations, grew into a global network of 46,000 clubs with 1.4 million members in 200 countries, who dedicate their time and talent to tackle the world's most pressing humanitarian challenges. A standout among many significant contributions to humanitarian causes around the world, and among Rotary's major accomplishments over time was its highly successful attempt at eradicating polio, a program the organization launched in 1985. Within twenty-five years of its inception Rotary amassed $900 million in contributions to the cause, which helped to support the immunization of two billion children worldwide. With financial assistance from the "Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation," and through the massive involvement of Rotary's international network of volunteers around the world, polio cases, over time, were reduced by 99%, leaving only Afghanistan, Pakistan and Nigeria still reporting cases today. Rotary's vast network of like-minded volunteers has proven to be instrumental in support of addressing multiple causes and challenges in many parts of the world. Its response to the humanitarian crises resulting from the current war in Ukraine is a case in point. The organization, headquartered in Evanston, Illinois, under guidance of John Hewko, whose mother was born in Kharkiv, one of Ukraine's most embattled cities, began focusing on the consequences of Russia's invasion within days of the start of hostilities on February 24. As General Secretary and CEO of Rotary International, Hewko, an actual member of the Rotary Club of Kyiv, used the reach of his organization to coordinate reactions to the need for humanitarian relief for refugees from the very beginning. Literally within days, Rotarians contributed $14.4 million to help financially support regions that assisted Ukrainian refugees or other victims of the war. Ukraine's 62 clubs, with an estimated 1,100 members, which, with the exception of a few now in Russian controlled areas, continue to meet regularly. They are active in war zones, even in cities like Kharkiv, they help refugees adopt to their new realities, help people evacuate to safe zones, prepare and deliver hot meals, and function as distributors of supplies provided by clubs from surrounding countries. Across Europe, Rotaract members, a younger group of Rotarians, use digital tools to share information and coordinate assistance to people affected by the war. Iryna Bushmina, a member of the Rotaract Club of Kyiv-City, after fleeing with her sister and three month old nephew - journeying to Vienna - organized a huge scale relief effort and an online platform to find shelter for thousands of Ukrainian refugees. The point is this: Rotary has become a very significant international force for humanitarian relief efforts. The organization does go out of its way to insist that it is not politically motivated. In effect, when asked about its interest in the military operation in Ukraine, Rotary International responded: "As one of the world's largest humanitarian organizations, we have made promoting peace the cornerstone of our global mission. Our call for an immediate ceasefire and a restoration of diplomatic efforts is not about politics, it's about safety and humanity." While, internationally, Rotary's reach and coordinated involvement is significant, local clubs, while supporting international efforts, are doing their best to be relevant to their own communities as well. Watsonville Rotary, one of seven clubs in Santa Cruz County, is celebrating it's 95th anniversary this Sunday, May 22. As reported in the Register-Pajaronian, the Rotary Club of Watsonville received its charter on May 21, 1927. While the initial twenty-five charter members hoped that this occasion would earn them headline coverage in the paper that day, the honor bestowed by Rotary International on our community received second billing to "Lindbergh Lands Safely in Paris" that same day. A coincidence old-timers never forgot. Membership in the local club, which meets every Wednesday for lunch at the Elk's Club on Martinelli Street, averages between 70-80 Rotarians. Over the years the club has substantially contributed to a wide variety of community as well as international philanthropic efforts. Its Community Trust program, serving Watsonville youth and local non-profits, has distributed well over $500,000. The club's "adopted" schools - E.A. Hall, Renaissance, New School and Cabrillo - benefited to the tune of $160,000 for scholarships and equipment. Projects funding literacy programs, health education, medical supply needs and water sanitation projects in Guatemala and Peru received more than $200,000. over time. Job shadowing events for Watsonville High students, speech contests, support for foreign exchange students and weekly student achievement recognition at informative luncheon meetings round out inclusive, well thought out programs. The club's 95th anniversary and its legacy of productive empathy represent a well deserved milestone in the Watsonville and Pajaro Valley community. Theo Wierdsma

PUTIN'S "BIG BROTHER" BARRIERS

Recent press reports of polling results indicating that upwards of 71% of Russians say they support Putin's war in Ukraine caught many by surprise. After all, Western media continue to cover the horrific effects of military activity Ukraine is daily exposed to in great detail. However, these statistics should not astonish anyone. While, internationally, as a result of imposed sanctions, Russian society has become more or less isolated, domestically, Vladimir Putin has spared no effort putting up barriers to insure it is insulated from unwanted and unsanctioned outside sources of information. Staying true to autocratic leadership principles, Putin has had 22 years to wrest control over Russia's communications channels. In today's Russia all major media outlets are controlled by the state. The Russian government owns 60% of newspapers and all national television stations. Russia's system of "Operational Investigatory Measures" requires telecommunications operators to install hardware provided by the FSB (formerly KGB), which allows the agency to unilaterally monitor users' communications and content, including phone calls, email traffic and web browsing activity. Besides, according to a 2016 Rand Corporation report, Russia's propaganda machine broadcasts "incredibly large volumes [of propaganda] via text, video, audio, internet, social media, satellite TV and traditional radio and television broadcasting." So, why do so many Russians say they support the "special operation" in Ukraine? The government controls the media and the message. It consequently controls the collective mind of the citizenry. Putin has taken the edict from his favorite historic mentor, Joseph Stalin, to heart: "The press must grow day in and day out - it is our party's sharpest and most resourceful weapon." This sentiment was restated by one of Stalin's successors, Nikita Khrushchev, who also believed that "the press is our chief ideological weapon." Many influential leaders, in Russia and beyond, have since repeated this point of view. One of the most poignant articulations came from Malcolm X, who expressed the opinion that: The media is the most powerful entity on earth. They have the power to make the innocent guilty and to make the guilty innocent, and that is power, because they control the mind of the masses." Putin developed governmental control into a science, managing to either block, sanitize or drown out interpretation, commentary and criticism that conflicted with officially sanctioned coverage of news content. In light of the military conflict in Ukraine, the government passed laws criminalizing "discrediting" the Russian military, spreading "fake news" and mentioning in the press that the Russian invasion of Ukraine amounted to war. Penalties for disobeying these laws can add up to 15 years in prison. Thus far, well over 15,000 dissidents have been arrested. For many, the mere expression of unsanctioned thought begins to feel like a criminal act. What Russians are hearing from their government every day are statements like: There is no ongoing war; The special operation held in Ukraine is aimed strictly at the military infrastructure of the fascists who seized power in Kyiv to intimidate and oppress the nation; We fight for our freedom and the freedom of the Ukrainian people; The Ukrainians welcome the Russian army, the only ones resisting are Nazi groups and military forces controlled by the fascist Kyiv regime; Russia has not started the war, it has come to end it; If it had not been for the Russian operation, NATO and the Nazis would have attacked us imminently to proceed with the genocide of the Russian and the Ukrainian nations - and so on. (Robert Coalson, Radio Free Europe). After being subjected to this persistent propaganda blitz and the reality of the government's uncontested control over official media outlets, polling results are not at all surprising. Combine these influences with the liberal use of leading questions, like: "Do you support a battle against Nazism?" and the caution expressed during virtually every interview that answers are recorded for "quality control," and the fix is in. No wonder Putin's popularity exceeds 80%. Who dares to dispute that? In March, Maxim Katz, an opposition politician in Moscow, with a team of researchers, commissioned a poll on public attitudes towards the war. Out of 31,000 people contacted, 29,400 ended the conversation as soon as they heard the topic. The sociologist Iskander Yasaveyev has suggested that "many Russians understand that they are being lied to, that they are getting propaganda, but they want to be deceived. It is simpler for them to suppress their inner conflict." Seventy-three years after George Orwell published "1984," "Big Brother" is still watching. Theo Wierdsma