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Understanding Russia [1]
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Date: 2022-10-17
Putin and Kirill share a mission from God
history cultural feelings and attitudes
This is hard to understand, so I look for simple models (or oversimplified models) that can at least be understood. Example: Kos's simplification of Russia: Life is shit but can be made endurable through vodka (i.e. be resigned to tyranny, lies, brutality, fear, and just be quiet and get along as best you can). But many Russians believe in Putin and "Holy Russia" and endorse his view of history, including a moral obligation to take back Ukraine from the decadent West, dominated by the USA.
Here are a few ideas and questions, loosely connected:
Persons who grow up within a culture of ignorance and warped reality, never exposed to critical thinking, will remain ignorant and warped no matter what their native intelligence may be. Thus we have fervent Muslims, Jews, Christians, Hindus, etc. with very strange and conflicting views of reality.
Do the believers in Putin and "Holy Russia" fit into the same picture?
Why can deep cultural distortions of reality remain so strong in modern times, with our science and knowledge about history? It seems Man has not progressed beyond making offerings and flattering the gods of Mount Olympus, to attain wealth and power, or just to keep safe.
Tribalism is likely genetic. In modern societies this comes out as racism, nationalism, ethnic rivalry, religious rivalry, political parties, and even sports hooligans. Add to this our apparent need to be part of something greater and more enduring than ourselves, which helps us attach to any convenient absurdity that lets us belong to a special group, our "tribe". Is this the root of all evil?
This awful aspect of human nature can be countered only by education, esp. the objective study of history and cultural attitudes. Most national education systems do the opposite: historical and cultural distortions are promoted (indoctrinated).
There are plenty of Americans who believe they live in a special country. Manifest Destiny of the 1800s is still present, if attenuated. The current chaos in UK politics comes partly from conservative politicians with minds still living in the era of empire.
Politicians use ignorance and prejudice to win and motivate voters. This makes me doubt the long term viability of democracy.
On the other hand, there is some reason for optimism. Here are some words from the USA National Security Strategy (via Heather Cox Richardson):
The post-Cold War era is definitively over and a competition is underway between the major powers to shape what comes next. No nation is better positioned to succeed in this competition than the United States, as long as we work in common cause with those who share our vision of a world that is free, open, secure, and prosperous. This means that the foundational principles of self-determination, territorial integrity, and political independence must be respected, international institutions must be strengthened, countries must be free to determine their own foreign policy choices, information must be allowed to flow freely, universal human rights must be upheld, and the global economy must operate on a level playing field and provide opportunity for all.
Is this the true America, or does it mask US hegemony and mercantilism?
If Trump returns, we can safely throw these words into the bin.
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