Saturday, November 15, 2014

Russia Update

It seems to me that Russia is trying to go out with a bang, as it bankrupts itself while trying to prove that it is still a major world power, worthy of the concern of its military rivals around the globe.

Had the last month's worth of developments from Russia happened in the 1970's or 1980's, the hype out of Washington would have been unstoppable. It is truly interesting how the change in focus changes our perception of reality, and of what we should be worried about, or not.

Here are some of the recent developments that would have had politicians up in arms, once upon a time (some of these clips are from RT, which is going to be reporting from a Russian point of view - I provide the links for information only, and do not endorse any political views expressed within these clips).

The news media keeps reiterating that Russia does not pose a real military threat to the United States, which is probably true in a direct sense. I think that, if there is a threat, it comes from what may be the repercussions of Russia's unclear end-goal in eastern Europe. If the history of the last one hundred years teaches us anything, it is that we should pay close attention to what is happening there.

Russia may not pose a threat militarily (except for their nuclear arsenal, which has been a threat for as long as most of us can remember), but the actions of a country looking to regain some long-lost glory at any expense could be the kind of spark that lights an unpredictable powder keg. Hopefully not.

Hopefully this is all just a bunch of bluster that everyone will be able to keep in perspective and ignore completely, or shut down where appropriate.