Have I mentioned lately how thankful I am that my grandparents on my father’s side, and my great-grandparents on my mother’s side, left Russia and Latvia and came here?
“Mother Russia” my ass. “Master Russia” is the only fitting title. Mark Twain figured out the Russians a century ago. He wrote this in 1905:
We have the flies and the Russians, we cannot help it, let us not bemoan about it, but manfully accept the dispensation and do the best we can with it. Time will bring relief, this we know, for we have history for it. Nature had made many and many a mistake before she added flies and Russians, and always she corrected them as soon as she could. She will correct this one too — in time. Geological time.
[…] Even in our own day Russians could be made useful if only a way could be found to inject some intelligence into them. How magnificently they fight in Manchuria! With what indestructible pluck they rise up after the daily defeat, and sternly strike, and strike again! how gallant they are, how devoted, how superbly unconquerable! If they would only reflect! if they could only reflect! if they only had something to reflect with! Then these humble and lovable slaves would perceive that the splendid fighting-energy which they are wasting to keep their chipmunk on the throne would abolish both him and it if intelligently applied.
I think if he were writing today, he would not say much different about the Russians, who replaced their inherited Czar with an “elected” one.
Thanks again, Great-grandparents and Grandparents. When we meet in the world to come, I will do the equivalent of buying you a drink there.
What frightens me about the current round of Russian expansionism is how hollow it is at the center. It seems to be a pure will-to-power, without an ideological basis or emotional hook like racism or imperialism to hang it on. Putin has managed to create a cult of personality that lacks any discernible personality.
The nationalistic component seems to be “The Russian soul was made to suffer. We need to make sure everyone around us is suffering too.”
The Russians act as they do because they feel that they are surrounded by enemies. This is true. The Russians, by hard work over many years, made them enemies.