Increasingly Random Notes

Apayauq Reitan - the first Indigenous trans woman to compete in the Iditarod

Photo by Shan Cole

Ways to support Ukraine 🇺🇦

More than 500,000 people have already left Ukraine due to the invasion by the Russian Federation. The European Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management estimates that roughly 18 million Ukrainians will be affected by the conflict in humanitarian terms, with 7 million internally displaced and 4 million seeking refuge elsewhere. To help those still in Ukraine, as well as Ukrainian refugees, we’ve compiled this list of resources.

HelpUkraineWin.org has a collection of vetted and trusted resources, charities, and organizations to help Ukraine.

Some additional ways to donate:

Vostok SOS provides immediate evacuation support.

Malteser International provides essentials for Ukrainian refugees.

Ukraine Crisis Media Center provides fundraising links and a list of tips for sharing information.

Misinformation spreads fast on social media. It is more important than ever to share accurate, verifiable news and information. Here are some resources to learn how to identify misinformation:

This link from the nonprofit WITNESS shares tips for identifying authentic video sources (available in English, Spanish, Ukranian, Russian, and Arabic).

These visual verification tips, also from WITNESS, provide information on verifying images and videos (available in English and Spanish).

“Praised be doubt! I advise you to greet Cheerfully and with respect the man Who tests your word like a bad penny. I’d like you to be wise and not to give Your word with too much assurance.

Read history and see The headlong flight of invincible armies. Wherever you look Impregnable strongholds collapse and Even if the Armada was innumerable as it left port The returning ships Could be numbered.

Thus one day a man stood on the unattainable summit And a ship reached the end of The endless sea.

O Beautiful the shaking of heads Over the indisputable truth! O brave the doctor’s cure Of the incurable patient!

But the most beautiful of all doubts Is when the downtrodden and despondent raise their heads            and Stop believing in the strength Of their oppressors.

[…]

There are the thoughtless who never doubt Their digestion is splendid, their judgment is infallible. They don’t believe in the facts, they believe only in themselves. When it comes to the point The facts must go by the board Their patience with themselves Is boundless. To arguments They listen with the ear of a police spy. 

The thoughtless who never doubt Meet the thoughtful who never act. They doubt, not in order to come to a decision but To avoid a decision. Their heads They use only for shaking. With anxious faces they warn the crews of sinking ships that water is dangerous. Beneath the murderer’s axe They ask themselves if he isn’t human too. Murmuring something About the situation not yet being clarified, they go to bed. Their only action is to vacillate. Their favorite phrase is: not yet ripe for discussion.

Therefore, if you praise doubt Do not praise The doubt which is a form of despair. What use is the ability to doubt to a man Who can’t make up his mind? He who is content with too few reasons May act wrongly But he who needs too many Remains inactive under danger.”