10

Another analysis of Ukraine

Posted by $ blarman 2 years, 6 months ago to History
94 comments | Share | Flag

I thought I'd add one more scholarly look at the basket-case which is the Ukraine/Black Sea region. The author lays out some of the history of the region as well as the less-admirable aspects of US involvement.

Another way to look at it is the Cuban Missile Crisis - just reversed. Can anyone really fault Putin for not wanting HIMARS systems - potentially nuclear tipped - right off his border and especially in a region which has been affiliated with Russia for hundreds of years?


All Comments


Previous comments...   You are currently on page 3.
  • Posted by Dobrien 2 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    If the real journalists were not fired for telling the truth most of the world would have understood what is going on in Ukraine.
    Have you heard of the BRICS? that’s 3/4 of the worlds population and they support Putin. It’s only the corrupt WEF and the purchased politicians of NATO countries who support Ukraine. Just like they support Klaus Schwab and the Great Reset. Even now they are pushing to make Ukraine a NATO member. That is an intolerable prospect for Russia. Killing civilians and bombing non military areas for The Land/ Natural resource grab describes Bush’s Iraq fiasco or Obama’s Libya action, Where’s the Gold? Why did Obama/NATO take out Libya’s eight wonder of the world , the under water river system? Maybe you have not heard of it…
    Contrary to common belief, the most important riches of Libya are not the oil wells, but water. The world’s biggest reservoirs of fossil freshwater lie below its desert. Through an extensive pipeline system, these aquifers provide the country with water for consumption and agriculture. The so-called “Great Man-Made River” is the world’s largest irrigation project.
    Reply | Permalink  
  • Posted by Dobrien 2 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Correct but you will not over take the brainwashed , with the facts. It can not be done. What you can and have done is plant the seed. The truth eventually will water it. Russia people have suffered tremendously since the Deep State Banking Cartel financed and directed the Bolshevik Revolution. Words describing Putin are easily banded about ,like Head of KGB or Dictator and so on. He was never high up in the KGB and was Used as a translator because he learned to speak German fluently as a student. His family suffered great loss from the NAZIS. His German studies were a result, never again.
    Putin has from the start made it clear he sees communism as a dead end alley. He rescued the Russian people from a free for all of assets and resources jailing an oligarchy tied to the Cabal. From that point the media smear campaign commenced.
    Reply | Permalink  
  • Posted by term2 2 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    It seems to me that statism is slowly taking over day by day, however. It doesnt feel very good, and its going to kill off the capitalist system we have here in the usa. As the usa declines, its opening up the doors for the dictators to expand their spheres of influence, and it will go against that "community of nations" you mention. As globalization declines and the stronger go after the weaker, the world will revert to a previous dangerous time.
    Reply | Permalink  
  • Posted by fairbro 2 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    You should go and visit Russia, although it's a bit sketchy now. :) Nothing anyone ever says to you will ever impress you as much as your own experiences. Don't stay in Moscow, the world's most expensive city, go to a provincial city, like Samara or Togliatti, that is more enjoyable. Or Crimea. They are truly Russians, too. I was invited into peoples' homes for dinner, solely because I was an American, in Ukraine and in Russia. A beautiful girl followed me around all day just so she could practice her English. They are great people. Ukraine is much more corrupt if you run a business, it's just a way of life for them, payoffs for doing nothing. If you do go there, go in summer. Russian winter is very cold. My friend runs a Bed n Breakfast in Samara. http://stayinsamara.com.

    Under Putin, the standard of living is about the same as Sweden or of Finland, filtered by the exchange rate of the Ruble, of course, so the GDP figures are distorted.

    Stalin was a long time ago, when all countries had to expand or they would be "contracted against." We need to let go of the past and past injustices. I can't stand people in the US who continually rail about past injustices as if I had anything to do with such history. In fact, my ancestors died (I am from NY), 500,000 of them, to free the slaves, but who offers me a recompense?

    The past is past and can't be undone. And today, the world is embracing a new paradigm, where there truly is a "community of nations" and not one "King Country". There will be better communication and affinity (when the oligarchs controlling social media are disenfranchised), leading to greater understanding around the globe, with planetwide agreements, between individuals, groups and nations.

    Nostradamus predicted this "new paradigm" in the 1400s. The next couple years are going to be turbulent, so hang onto your hat, Tectonic plates are shifting and the Earth will never be the same.
    Reply | Permalink  
  • Posted by term2 2 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    What would you call the buildup of the Soviet Union, from Lenin to Stalin, to the other leaders of Soviet Russia with the exception of Gorbachov (and look what happened to him). There seems to be a real defect in the Russian culture that leads the russians to behave in an expansionist mode over a LONG period of time. The czars werent any better really. Human rights dont seem to occupy an important place in Russian culture. Putin is NOT Hitler, but in many ways he acts LIKE Hitler. Both were dictators, both were power hungry using as an excuse the patriotism of the mother/father land, and both got rid of political adversaries.

    I am not sure what the Satan construct really is, so I dont call anyone Satan. Not sure what even means.

    As to our media, I agree totally that what we hear from them is very suspect
    Reply | Permalink  
  • Posted by term2 2 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    That whole area is deficient in so many areas of human rights that no solution is really close to perfect. But war is not a solution for sure, and putin is wrong to simply invade to get his way.

    Russia is way too paranoid about the west invading russia. I just dont see anyone in the west actually wanting to attack russia militarily. When he is so paranoid, it makes me think this is psychological projection more than anything. I watched Oliver Stone's interview with Putin, and he seemed (at least at the time) to be fairly reasonable and amenable to discourse.
    Reply | Permalink  
  • Posted by fairbro 2 years, 6 months ago
    The media filters and distorts whatever Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin says, so here is an actual excerpt from a real address on September 30, 2022.
    (I think he is using the word "satanist" in the same way one might exaggerate to make a valid lesser point.)

    VVP does not want to war with the West. He does not want to engage with them. Russia has turned its back on the West, and the rest of the world is not regretting that the US is no longer the "King of the Countries."

    (excerpt)

    “Let’s answer some very simple questions for ourselves. Now I would like to return to what I said and want to address also all citizens of the country – not just the colleagues that are in the hall – but all citizens of Russia: do we want to have here, in our country, in Russia, “parent number one, parent number two and parent number three” (they have completely lost it!) instead of mother and father? Do we want our schools to impose on our children, from their earliest days in school, perversions that lead to degradation and extinction? Do we want to drum into their heads the ideas that certain other genders exist along with women and men and to offer them gender reassignment surgery? Is that what we want for our country and our children? This is all unacceptable to us. We have a different future of our own.

    Let me repeat that the dictatorship of the Western elites targets all societies, including the citizens of Western countries themselves. This is a challenge to all. This complete renunciation of what it means to be human, the overthrow of faith and traditional values, and the suppression of freedom are coming to resemble a “religion in reverse” – pure Satanism. Exposing false messiahs, Jesus Christ said in the Sermon on the Mount: “By their fruits ye shall know them.” These poisonous fruits are already obvious to people, and not only in our country but also in all countries, including many people in the West itself.”
    Reply | Permalink  
  • Posted by fairbro 2 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Like I said, you have been driven mad by the media.

    The media lies to you. About Coivd, about the 2020 "election," about Trump Collusion with Russia, about Ukraine, about Russia and about the whole gamut of US domestic issues.

    Putin is not Hitler.
    Putin is not Satan.

    There is no such thing as "Russian Expansionism."
    Reply | Permalink  
  • -1
    Posted by term2 2 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    I have to think there is no booty in Ukraine to justify the USA involvement at all. This is all about standing around while Putin (aka Hitler v2.0) enslaves more and more people, takes their wealth, and continues his invasions country after country. The result last time was WW2 anyway, but with Hiltler stronger than ever. Do you actually think Putin is different from Hitler?
    Reply | Permalink  
  • Posted by fairbro 2 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Poland already has a lot of soldiers in Ukraine, so they have chosen to be involved and to kill Russians. Is Russia supposed to ignore this fact? That said, why would Russia want to assume welfare payments for 40 million deadbeat Poles? Just get rid of their war machine and let them fend for themselves.

    In Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania, ethnic Russians are not allowed to vote and are discriminated against when running businesses or owning property.

    Yes, these are human rights violations and following the US and NATO examples, it is okay to invade countries which violate fundamental Human Rights.
    Reply | Permalink  
  • Posted by term2 2 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Actually, I dont dislike Russians per se, but I certainly dont have any love or respect for dictator Putin. i would say that the philosophical basis which is apparent in Russia SUCKS such that its so corrupt and places evil people like Putin in power.
    I didnt see Ukraine invading Russia. I did see Russia invading Ukraine, so its not so hard to "articulate"
    Reply | Permalink  
  • Posted by term2 2 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Its not fair no matter what really. If half the people want to be ruled by dictator Putin, and the other half want to be independent, that still leaves the whole issue of half the people give up their wealth and run for their lives from Putin, OR the other half give up the dream of being Russian.

    What a mess. If I were Ukranian, I would probably have left Ukraine awhile back and salvaged whatever I could of my wealth (if I had any) and never looked back. If I was Russian, I would probably have moved back to Russia after liquidating what I could of my wealth in Ukraine.
    Reply | Permalink  
  • Posted by term2 2 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    the real issue is how to stop Putin in his march to increase his power and the power of expansionist russia. This is very similar to stopping Hitler and his expansionist germany. The question is if you know what they are going to do, when is the best time to stand up and fight.

    One can argue that assisting ukraine ISNT the place to make a stand against Russia's expansion. I am not sure about the answer to this, but at some point none of us will be safe the more power russia and its dictator are. We waited too long to go after Hitler, and look what happened. If we draw the line at Poland after Putin has assimilated the wealth of Ukraine, will be just be fighting a stronger Russia anyway?
    Reply | Permalink  
  • Posted by fairbro 2 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    The ethnic Russians in "Ukraine" already had a vote, and they voted to secede.

    Which part of the "Human Right of Self-Determination" do you not understand?
    Reply | Permalink  
  • Posted by fairbro 2 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    " the evil behind the Russian government "

    I see this everywhere. No articulation to the anger - driven insane by years of anti-Russian vitriol and disinformation pounding 24/7/365 from the hatemongering dishonest media? Similar to TDS.
    Reply | Permalink  
  • Posted by fairbro 2 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    The "Ukrainian" soldiers are increasingly Polish and increasingly African and Middle Eastern mercenaries, what the US labels "terrorists."

    The Ukrainian oligarchs organized their own private armies, to protect their wealth had their own groupings of armed militants, such as Azov battalion, some of whom have Nazi tattoos.

    My tax dollars are supporting the Ukrainian mafia - the oligarch structure - and an army which includes thousands of violent thugs released from prison on promise to fight in the army, and NATO's imported Middle Eastern terrorists who commit unreported war crimes.
    Reply | Permalink  
  • Posted by fairbro 2 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Zorro was elected by promising to reach out to Russia and make a deal regarding Donbass.

    Once in office, Dr. Jekyll changed to Mr. Hyde. He refused to honor the Minsk agreements and he worked with NATO, planning an invasion of the LPR and DPR, as well as Russian Crimea. The US has pumped in $80 billion in weapons to Ukraine since 2014.
    Reply | Permalink  
  • Posted by term2 2 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    The US is trying to keep putin occupied in Ukraine- neither to win or lose. If putin wind ukraine, he will just move on to poland and then we have ww3
    Reply | Permalink  
  • Posted by term2 2 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    If Ukranians were ok with Russia, there wouldnt be a Zelensky and all those Ukranian soldiers fighting the russians. They know the evil behind the russian government and want nothing to do with it. I say let the Ukranians vote and let the chips fall as they may.

    That said, what Putin is doing is just wrong and he deserves to lose big time.
    Reply | Permalink  
  • Posted by fairbro 2 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Your comment (craigerb) is laughable! The US has been interfering with Russia's vital interests, and on Russia's borders with other nations, since the 1950's, and meddling inside Russia through numerous NGO's for several decades. The US has promoted ethnic discord and internal opposition. The US A.I.D. even had a program of grants to $100,000 to any Russian (or Ukriainina) who would oppose the government via a publication, newsletter or anti-government broadcast.
    Reply | Permalink  
  • Posted by fairbro 2 years, 6 months ago
    In Scientology, we have this "3rd Party Law". It says something like "If two people don't get along, the problem can usually be traced to an unknown 3rd person." For example, a meddling in-law gossipping in the ear of one partner in a marriage, causes the marriage to founder.

    One can apply this maxim to nations. Russia and Ukraine have been integrated, intermingled and intermarried for generations. My best friends in Simferopol ("sim-fer OPAL" if you're wondering) are married - a Ukrainian woman and Russian man. But the US has been interfering in national relations between Ukraine-Russia for a couple of decades now.

    The US has only itself to blame for this conflict.

    https://www.scientology.tv/series/l-r...
    Reply | Permalink  
  • Posted by $ 2 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    I'll turn this around on you: what evidence do you have to the contrary?

    Pick a topic. I'm all for a good debate which gives both sides a chance to offer their arguments, framework, and support. (I'm a certified State Debate Judge.) If you care to do so, I'm more than happy to listen to what you have to say.

    This is the best forum on the internet (IMHO) for reasoned debate. And we're more than happy - and capable - of poking holes in poorly-devised arguments. I've been justifiably skewered several times and come out the better in the end as a result. So if you have such a rhetorical kebab, toss it on the fire!
    Reply | Permalink  
  • Posted by $ 2 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    "So if Putin takes over ukraine and has 40 million people ready to assassinate him at their first opportunity..."

    Actual polling from only a couple of years ago put the sensibilities of the people in Crimea better than 90% in favor with Russia. Among the reasons cited in the article you have several hundred years of culture. I'd take about five zeroes off your estimate there.

    You are right about Poland. They hate Russia not only for splitting them with the Germans at the beginning of the war but the way they allowed 50% of Warsaw to be slaughtered by the Nazis at the end of the war just so Russia could install a puppet leader. There is no love lost between those two nations and it is why Poland is actually one NATO member the US has always been able to depend on since their breakoff in the 90's.

    "Fact is that Russia is a communist country..."

    I'd actually put Russia's current state far closer to a dictatorship or oligarchy for the simple fact that Putin is king. But the underlying economy and such has changed radically: where once literally everything was controlled by the Politburo, you now have Putin actually supporting private industry to a growing degree. Conditions have changed there. It's not a great western market and there is still a thriving black market, but when you consider that Russian history includes precisely ZERO familiarity with individual rights, I'd like to give them credit for trying. It's easy for us to overlook here in the United States, but even scholars admit that the US was remarkably used to self-rule for nearly a century prior to the Declaration of Independence. Russia has only been at this for about twenty years in comparison.
    Reply | Permalink  
  • -1
    Posted by craigerb 2 years, 6 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Do you have a link to the referenced post?
    Did any of Dobrien's rant meet your "rigorous testing and support" criterion?
    Reply | Permalink  

  • Comment hidden. Undo