The sting of a slap is sometimes felt for years or even decades after such an event. Perhaps a fight with a loved one, or even an altercation with a bully, and certainly things graver than that. Such it is with the history of nations and peoples. Take the nation of Poland, for example, which at its height in the early 1600s controlled over a million square kilometers.

As the Trump administration carries out what many observers say are illegal military strikes against vessels in the Caribbean allegedly smuggling drugs, six Democratic members of Congress issued a video on Nov. 18, 2025, telling the military “You can refuse illegal orders” and “You must refuse illegal orders.”