War is never a good thing, which might be such an understatement that it borders on being criminally fatuous or at least flirts with hyperbolic idiocy, but you have to give credit to many of the kings and queens of the past. When their armies went to war, they often led them, and not from the command center of an ivory tower or from a secure bunker in a secret locale. People like Henry the Vth were horrifically maimed by arrows that tore into their body on the battlefield. They fought against their enemies, often in hand-to-hand combat, right alongside their knights.
I guess that's why Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky resonates so strongly with so many people. If you know me, you know damn well just how opposed I am to turning any politician into a hero or cult figure, but there's something that speaks to us about a modern leader who eschews the suit and tie in favor of a combat jacket. I have no idea if he's helped dig a trench or even fired a rifle, but he's still there, on the frontlines, still present among his people in the midst of a brutal and horrific war.
Let's see the next President of Prime Minister to declare a war have the courage to follow his example.
