Good post, and I appreciate the historic tie in to the fall of the Soviet Union and the "oligarchification" of the Russian economy. I would have liked more push back on Putin's claim that Ukraine is a part of Russia "created by lenin." It's absolutely not true and Ukraine has had a separate history, culture, and national identity for far more than 100 years. And Kiev was the heart of Slavic civilization long before Moscow or st. Petersburg. Putin is making a Russian nationalist argument yes, but it should also be pointed out clearly that it is a completely fabricated argument as well.
Thank you for bring up "good vs evil." People are framing the 2024 U.S. Presidential election that way. I tell these folks that I don't believe in good or evil. I ask them to convince me another way. They say I'm being ridiculous and feel sorry for me because of my belief. But they can't come up with a convincing argument to vote for Biden except he isn't Trump. <shrug>
Pretty good piece, however I do disagree a bit on the point about Putin's nationalism. I think him citing that "Ukraine was once a part of Russia" is less something he believes in and more him just using a nationalistic argument to whip up support for the invasion. Keep in mind that when the Donbass voted in a referendum to leave Ukraine and become a part of Russia, Putin was the one who rejected it, since he feared it would be too much of an escalation with the West.
Aside from that though, this was a really good piece.
Milton Friedman holds an eternal high-ranking slot on my Shit List.
Thanks for putting this together, a really helpful re-contextualization after a few months of not thinking about this.
Good post, and I appreciate the historic tie in to the fall of the Soviet Union and the "oligarchification" of the Russian economy. I would have liked more push back on Putin's claim that Ukraine is a part of Russia "created by lenin." It's absolutely not true and Ukraine has had a separate history, culture, and national identity for far more than 100 years. And Kiev was the heart of Slavic civilization long before Moscow or st. Petersburg. Putin is making a Russian nationalist argument yes, but it should also be pointed out clearly that it is a completely fabricated argument as well.
Thank you for bring up "good vs evil." People are framing the 2024 U.S. Presidential election that way. I tell these folks that I don't believe in good or evil. I ask them to convince me another way. They say I'm being ridiculous and feel sorry for me because of my belief. But they can't come up with a convincing argument to vote for Biden except he isn't Trump. <shrug>
Pretty good piece, however I do disagree a bit on the point about Putin's nationalism. I think him citing that "Ukraine was once a part of Russia" is less something he believes in and more him just using a nationalistic argument to whip up support for the invasion. Keep in mind that when the Donbass voted in a referendum to leave Ukraine and become a part of Russia, Putin was the one who rejected it, since he feared it would be too much of an escalation with the West.
Aside from that though, this was a really good piece.
Take your last line and substitute Ukraine for Russia. We never learn.
Good read, liked how you tied "Marvelization" into this