Ninety percent of the world's nuclear weapons are controlled by two men who are on TV right now. I think of them's a clod with a gift for PR and the other's a sneaky spymaster . And yet I sleep pretty well, because one of them is also a Republican President the Press finds particularly loathsome; he can't so much as scratch his backside without some network, wire service, website or newspaper pointing out in bold type how the man is disrespecting the National Pants.
Is our President Up To Something, with or without the assistance of ol' KGB Vlad? Probably. We stick Presidents and the top Russian muckety-muck of the moment, Czar or Party Secretary or however you spell "El Capo" in Cyrillic, into these summits in the somewhat forlorn hope they'll remember all their kewl stuff is on this planet and therefore conspire to promote and promulgate peace. And if we are very fortunate, they are watched by the Press as narrowly as a bird of prey watches a mouse and with greater suspicion.
The Press will ask good questions. They'll ask stupid questions. They'll investigate, speculate, and some of them will make things up. In the end, the truth will come out.
Governments rule with the consent -- tacit or overt -- of the governed. The Russian government and people know it better than many, having had two entire systems of government fall apart twice in the span of single long lifetime. The U. S. FedGov and Us, The People know it, too; we throw the old bums out and install a new set with remarkable regularity -- and occasionally hound sufficiently unpopular elected officials out of office, or at least away from re-election.
Yes, it's a proper sack of bastards who rule the world. But they're less inbred than ever, far less "Divinely entitled" than ever, and far more removable than ever. Don't like some of the present crop? Bide a wee, vote as hard as you can, and there will be a new set.
BUILDING A 1:1 BALUN
4 years ago
6 comments:
I think Trump's recent revelation about considering Putin to be a competitor, not an enemy, is an important change in perspective. I wonder how close Putin's perspective is to this? The Soviets were the enemy, and we used this to continue being antagonistic toward Russia, it seems.
"...a competitor not an enemy..."
"See? See?? Trump is soft on communism!" cried the objective and unbiased MSM.
Communism?
And another chunk is controlled by people who don't really want to burn down their biggest market..
By some lights (aka Jerry Pournelle) the Russians should be our allies or near partners.
I see many people, including some of my friends, are saying that the president is a traitor. I found that particularly funny, coming from those who supported presidents who used drones to kill our own citizens without a trial, among other fun things.
But the biggest thing I wish they would understand is that no matter what they think of Putin, he is nothing if not a patriot to his own country. His only desire, from what I have been able to learn, is to make sure that his country never again is taken down the road that they went down twice before, where they are torn apart. He just wants to make Russia strong enough to stand united and to remain a nation on the world stage. He is smart enough to know that the way to do that is not to antagonize the only world superpower, but instead to become if not friends, at least non aggressive partners in trade, and other cooperative endeavors that will help both nations, such as space exploration, and medical discoveries.
That doesn't mean that we can ever fully trust Putin. He is always going to put his own welfare ahead of any others. But even with our allies, we must always remain vigilant as to their motives. It is simply prudent and common sense.
If it turns out that the president has made a blunder with meeting with Putin, it won't be due to treason, but rather, to his bluster and his overly large ego that got him, and us, into trouble.
Don't be "disrespecting the National Pants". You are a gem.
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