Rhode Islanders are already experiencing unprecedented sticker shock at the gas pumps, and that pain is unlikely to fade any time soon. However, understanding one of the primary causes for this — instability created by Vladimir Putin’s maniacal decision to engage in a bloody and unjustifiable invasion of neighboring Ukraine — should also serve as a reminder to all of us why this price is one worth paying.

Global markets and large-scale geopolitical consequences are frustratingly complex — but grappling with that complexity is essential. Despite how easy it may be to place an infantile sticker of Joe Biden mockingly proclaiming “I did that” next to the price ticker on gas pumps throughout the state, anyone with even an elementary understanding of the mechanics that cause gas prices to ebb and flow will concur that, alas, it is not so simple.

Gas prices being the highest we’ve ever seen is not the result of one president, or any one entity. It is the result of a mass of complicated factors. Some of those factors include a simple increase in the demand of gasoline, which normally occurs as the weather gets nicer and people venture out into the world. The easing of Covid restrictions and our acceptance of the virus as a new endemic part of our lives is also likely increasing our demand for more gas to get back out into the world, driving up prices as a result.

With increasing demand, the supply of gasoline becomes more important. And the conflict in Ukraine has resulted in big changes in the supply chain of oil — on top of the historic trend of inflation that has been affecting oil prices for years prior to this moment in time. Fossil fuel companies play a major role in this as well, and should not be excused for their role in price manipulation.

The Biden administration has been forced to open up its retaliatory playbook in order to satisfactorily punish Russia for its aggression without potentially causing World War 3 by utilizing any direct military response. It cannot be understated how delicate of a balancing act this is.

By banning the import of Russian oil and gas, as was done Tuesday morning, the President has taken a calculated risk, during a key midterm election year, that the pain this will cause Americans at the gas pumps will be overridden by the more important show of support it provides to the free world, and to democracy as a concept in general.

Russia only contributes 10 percent of America’s crude oil. We have vast reserves and untapped land, as well as relationships with other oil-producing countries (which are also problematic, but less so than Russia, currently) that can be utilized to re-balance the scales and, eventually, push prices back down to reasonable levels.

What we cannot allow, however, is for one tyrannical madman to set a precedent that invading a sovereign nation on a false pretense of persecution and rightful ownership of that country will go unpunished. The world hangs in an historical balance today where authoritarian regimes, like Putin’s Russia, will test and re-test the boundaries of their ability to usurp and crumple the pillars of democracy. By taking a stand on Russian oil, the Biden administration has, at great political risk, shown a dedication to defending democracy from those types of ill-willed combatants.

It might hurt us in the wallet for a while, but $50 for a tank of gas instead of $30 is a comparatively small price to pay when we are seeing real, horrific acts of violence being perpetrated on innocent Ukrainian men, women and children each day.

American history is flush with examples of its people sacrificing their own comforts for a greater good, in war time and in peace time. Today’s gas prices are a microcosm of a much grander struggle occurring, and we must be committed to ponying up our share for the preservation of freedom and democracy.