Posted on 12/19/2014 3:23:15 AM PST by edpc
The West shouldn’t stoke the fires engulfing Russia’s wounded economy.
Talk in Washington and Brussels this week of levying further economic sanctions on Russia seems counterproductive and will only make matters worse for all parties involved. Like it or not, Russia’s economy has grown simply “too big to fail,” and its political and military might is too dangerous to ignore. The West might have better luck in advancing its goals in the region by helping, not hurting, the Russian bear in its time of need.
Oh, please....
It's capitalism in name only. Russia, like China, use markets to their advantage and convenience, while remaining Communist oligarchies at their core.
They are not, and never will be true partners of the West.
The financial elites’ PR attack on Russia continues.
Forbes, NYT, WaPo, etc., etc.
As if ANY of them give a rats’ patooty about the American sheeple.
This is all so the financial elites of globalist new world order can “Westernize” Ukraine...
first step, bring Ukraine into the EU.
PR PR PR PR PR PR PR PR PR.
Oh, and some more PR.
If it’s in our worst interests, obama will see that it happens.
We just saw what Norks could do with a laptop and a cheap hotel room against a major media outlet. They crumbled like so much rotten wood under the weight of Rosie odonnel at a cheeseburger buffet.
Now imagine what a vengeful, economically obliterated Russia could do with what amounts to a highly trained army of professional state sponsored hackers...
We had an opportunity at one time to reach out to Russia as brothers and partners. Sadly, that ship has sailed. I hope it can be salvaged one day though. Probably not before the wounded bear lashes out.
“It’s capitalism in name only. Russia, like China, use markets to their advantage and convenience, while remaining Communist oligarchies at their core”
Actually, government controlled private enterprise is the definition of Fascism - which is what both China and Russia are morphing into. Oh, almost forgot, the USA as well......
Aw, those poor Russians, all the regime has done is confiscate private property in order to use the cash stream to rebuild the Soviet Evil Empire.
Stop Russia from backing every last one of our enemies in this hemisphere is one thing we should be doing.
As far as keeping Russia from collapse — that will require the removal of Putin and his hideous regime. Short-term collapse is the only means short of war to do that.
There's an assumption they ever wanted to be partners in the first place. When Nixon visited China, the hope was they would eventually become a partner, as well. The following decades have clearly demonstrated neither nation has any real desire to do so. Prosperous or decimated, they're not our friends.
However that would have take more of an effort and commitment that modern liberals would have permitted us to apply. Perhaps it was doomed from the start after all.
We have our own domestic enemies to defeat first.
Your skepticism is justified.
However, I think that it's worth noting that, amongst the people, there is still a lot of good will towards the West and Western principles.
At the same time, I must admit that, amongst my Russian acquaintances and colleagues - and even in the case of one Russian friend - the "crisis" in the Ukraine (shorthand for: Russian invasion) has revealed the presence of a fault-line, the continued existence of which has surprised even me.
To whit: Even among many outwardly "normal" Russians, there is still a deep suspicion of and resentment towards the West - probably rooted in old feelings of inferiority and self-loathing and a vestigial belief in the "one strong man" principle of governance.
I'm still hoping for a turn-around - but I am also bracing for further deterioration in conditions, perhaps even a "SHTF" scenario which would invariably slop over into the West.
Regards,
Thank you!
I do believe that Russia will likely ally with China and we could have had a real partnership with Russia at some point.
Why not cultivate Russia as an ally?
Not with Putin in charge. They need a leader that doesn’t view the USSR as a golden age to be restored to its former glory.
Preaching to the choir here. Oddly, those that would brand all thus far in this thread 'Putinistas' and 'Quislings' haven't yet shown up...
Putin won't be around forever. All we're doing with our current policy is cultivating another generation of conflict while forcing Russia & China closer. Interesting whom that benefits...
We had much in common with the Russian people in WWII except their government's ideology, of which the people were victims. Now the Russia-haters would have us believe that all Russians are the enemy because of their leader and that somehow the persecuted Ukrainians are our friends. With that logic, how many countries see Americans as their enemy because of our so-called 'leader'? I am all for 'strength as a deterrence' and certainly to some respect 'preemption', but not when it's based on lies & propaganda. Our military mission has been destroyed by those that have abused that trust and are seeing the destruction of our military from within. It will take decades to repair the damage, both in personnel & leadership.
'Domestic enemies' is right. The same ones that would see our sovereignty & Constitution undermined. We can only hope the next conflict is 'winnable'...and the way things are going it won't be a foreign one (at least in conclusion).
propping up North Korea for decades has worked out so well.
There is part of me that agrees with you. But on the other hand, we have preached the great benefits of capitalism, still the Russian people have shouldered mostly hardship since 1989, and are probably starting to think they had it better under the old USSR.
Wouldn’t be so if there was a true free market system available to them.
I think Putin is eager to be more of a Tsar with the old Russian Empire run under his auspices. Thankfully he’s far too old to begin seizing a throne through conquest.
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