Those who WANT a confrontational policy towards Russia want the Cold War back.
Last edited Thu Jan 23, 2014, 12:00 AM - Edit history (4)
We need to treat Russia as just another country.
When it does bad, call it out on that, but not ever in the way we used to call out the USSR....not ever in the way of saying "we're the superior system and you're the inferior one".
And not ever in a tone of competition.
Russia is just a typical capitalist country now. Putin's policies aren't massively different than what Rick Santorum's would be.
If the Cold War thing is brought back, all further chance of any progressive change in THIS country dies. Forever.
ANY increase in the war budget makes all progressive change here impossible, because progressive change requires spending and government involvement. It isn't ever cheap.
All gains for LGBTQ people stop if the war budget goes up. All efforts to fight racism stop. Any chance of helping workers here get a better life stops. It all just dies. OK?
Stand with Russia's gays, and anybody else Russia represses, but do it in exactly the same tone as you'd use for Uganda, or Kenya, or Croatia. Making it any bigger than that serves only the cause of the right-wing extremists among us.
And really, it doesn't matter which faction "wins" in Ukraine, because BOTH sides are just right-wing nationalists, and all right-wing nationalists are exactly the same. There's no progressive side to take on that, because Ukraine doesn't have a Left. And if it doesn't have a Left, than why care?
The Cold War brought nothing but misery to the world the first time. Nothing but misery can come from bringing it back.
Is that THAT hard to see?