Some Thoughts on Putin and Russia…
via Non-Aligned Media
by Brandon Martinez
Jun 13, 2015
The following text stems from my response to a pro-Putin commenter here on Non-Aligned Media. I’ve addressed the Putin/Russia issue many times before, having written a number of articles dedicated to my criticisms of Putin. The commenter advanced many familiar, go-to arguments for why Putin is someone to be viewed favourably and I address them below.
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The commenter wrote:
he [Putin] threw out those who had already grabbed and privatised the 1) banks 2) insurance companies 3) media. By which they had gained control over the country, ready to exploit it further… the usual strategy. This they had achieved under drunkard Yeltsin. Putin returned the bank to the state, and told the Jews who put him in power to fuck off, one of them being Khodorkovsky who is the favourite candidate of the Americans for presidency in Russia. I am really not sure if your analysis is correct. What are your sources with regard to Putin? What do you think his ultimate goal is, then? From what I understand, the terrorists in Chechenya were Muslims… what if there were terrorist acts staged by Israel and CIA etc? Aren’t they the ones who are mainly after the natural resources in Russia? Who would have a reason to destabilize Russia? I mean he is ex-KGB, maybe he has some info that we don’t have?
My response:
Your thinking on this issue is indicative of a broader disconnect in the skewed outlook of many people who myopically divide the entire world into a conflict between Jews and Gentiles. Within this narrow line of reasoning, the Jew vs. Gentile dichotomy takes precedence over all other ethnic or geopolitical disputes. So in this case you prioritize Russian ‘interests’, dismissing Chechnya’s perspective whole sale, mainly because you feel Putin “stood up to the Jews” in whatever limited capacity that he did. So murdering 100,000 Chechens in a “dirty war” based on a lie is no biggie, because Putin quarrelled with a few rich Jews during his ascent to power. Doesn’t make much sense to me.
And it really gets convoluted when these supposedly pro-Muslim human rights, anti-Neocon, anti-Zionists start pontificating like neocon Zionists when it comes to Chechnya, spouting whole cloth Russian propaganda about “irrational jihadism” as the sole cause of the conflict between Russia and Chechnya, when obviously it’s a territorial dispute spurred by centuries of Russian occupation. We shouldn’t forget that even though Russia has humbled itself in recent years, it is still somewhat of an imperial power that seeks hegemony in its part of the world.
These same “anti-Zionists” would not be so keen to defend Russia and all of its geopolitical intrigues if it openly identified as Communist, even though Russia was markedly more hostile to Israel and friendlier to the Arab world during the communist years than it is today. But Putin has cleverly crafted a veneer of pro-Christian cultural conservatism which has wooed a good many conservative Christians in the West (proving that such people care more about his religious/cultural proclivities than his actions). Moreover, Putin’s luke-warm support of Syria and Iran (for venal economic reasons) has won over a good number of opportunistic Arabs/Muslims who prioritize Middle Eastern Arab/Muslim causes above that of the Chechens. However, none of Putin’s domestic policies or foreign policies in other areas exonerates him from culpability in murdering thousands of Chechens for the sake of maintaining Russian hegemony in the Caucasus.
PN 
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