Sooner or later it had to happen; the West’s CIA imperial fingers had been playing with Pandora’s Box carelessly in Ukraine and the lid gave way: the box has been opened and the Un-Evil Empire is left buck naked internationally to face the truth. And the truth is clear, raw and simple no matter what machinated twists and turns of propaganda come out of the hawks’ nests in Washington to keep Americans brainwashed, ready to accept the warmongering ways of the nation’s powerful elite.
Although the Cold War with the USSR ended a quarter of a century ago, America has not acquiesced to just the spoils of an ideological victory over communism; no, that would be only a Pyrrhic victory, and American imperialism requires a much bigger prize. Thus, the constant encroachment—or fear of encroachment—thrust on Russia during all these years after Mr. Gorbachev’s celebrated gift of peace via his perestroika and glasnost; starting with the disbanding of the USSR-dominated Warsaw Pact, followed by the emancipation or breakup of the republics which made up the Soviet Union . . . and, finally, today, with the prospect of NATO holding sardonic military “vigilance” of Russia at her very own borders.
George Bernard Shaw may have been referring to the United Kingdom, or the British Empire, when he said truth telling is not compatible with the defense of the realm, but for all intents and purposes it can also apply to the America we live in today, or for that matter to Russia. So why act surprised when NATO-members (the US as its head) or Russia patently lie concerning past, present and future matters dealing with Ukraine?
Ukraine has been providing the buffer zone Russia has required for her own self-defense coupled with Russia’s constant reminder to the US that provocative “defensive” missile sites in the contiguous former Warsaw-Pact nations would be looked upon as intrusive . . . perhaps not even be tolerated.
Russia has been paying for years a hefty rent to Ukraine for this buffer role, mostly in energy subsidies and a somewhat subsidized large commercial trade, independent of the rental cost of having a naval base in Crimea. This symbiotic relationship which might be considered impartially as economically favoring Ukraine no doubt received Russia’s consent after added consideration for their Slavic sisterhood; the sizeable ethnic-Russian population living in Ukraine; and the cultural-linguistic ties which elevate the Russian language as the de facto co-lingua-franca in all Ukraine. (Even in Kiev, capital and largest city of 2.7 million, only one in eight people hold an ethnic-Russian bloodline; yet the latest survey ((2006)) indicated that about half of the Kievans speak Russian at home, while a quarter of them communicate in Ukrainian, and the other quarter alternate between Russian and Ukrainian.)
Even the most critically-benign who have followed Ukraine’s march from socialism to capitalism will agree that the metamorphosis has been chaotic, perhaps the worst in all the former Soviet republics; economic thuggery and corruption being the order of the day. Mafiosi-oligarchs were created who “inherited” the people’s wealth . . . and they came from ambidextrous corruption, from the right and from the left. The last two role-thug models being Yulia Tymoshenko, an ultra-nationalist, ethnic-Ukrainian and former prime minister; and the recently deposed-by-force prime minister, Viktor Yanukovych, ethnic-Russian, now living in exile in Russia.
And while these hyenic prowlers of the Ukrainian economy were amassing personal fortunes, that nation’s economy was marching in a straight line towards bankruptcy, where the nation finds itself today . . . even with a helping hand from its older sibling, Russia, in both commerce and energy subsidies. And that’s where the entire fiasco had its start, the EuroMaidan protests . . . the CIA finding willing players ready to stir things up, opening up a new possibility for the Pentagon to get American missiles closer to that hateful Kremlin and those sons-of- . . . Bolsheviks. However, the acumen of US intelligence experts was pulverized in a dash and, in a coup de balai, Vladimir Putin took control of the situation, peacefully and authoritatively, finding diplomatic language and reason in what he was doing, much in contrast to America’s trashy politicians. We vividly recall the insulting venom coming out of John Kerry, Hillary Clinton and the no-nothing legislators infesting Capitol Hill shepherded, as always, by Light-Brain-Heavy-Words “Doomsday” McCain.
Ukraine is likely to stay whole if Putin and reason prevail . . . but if America feels obliged to unnecessarily save face, look for pro-Russia Maidans extending throughout much of the land east of the 30th Meridian (Kharkiv, Donetsk, Dnipropetrovsk, Odessa . . . ), much of the population wishing to become part of Russia. And the European Union will inherit, or at least have at its doorstep, a small, unproductive beggar-Ukraine seeking help to subsist . . . help that will require added sacrifice to an EU still in economic dire straits.
One way or another we can be sure of one thing: Vladimir Putin will find a way to ascertain that the buffer zone Russia requires for her self-defense, free from US missiles, will remain intact. Almost 52 years ago, Kennedy was resolute in not letting Russian missiles be pointed at the US from Cuba . . . which most Americans scored as Kennedy 1-Khruschev 0. Let’s be practical this time and, instead of scoring Putin 1—Obama 0 . . . be fair and score it Kennedy 1—Putin 1. And let Ukraine find its own future.
Ben Tanosborn, columnist, poet and writer, resides in Vancouver, Washington (USA), where he is principal of a business consulting firm. Contact him at ben@tanosborn.com.
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30th meridian: Russia’s Rubicon for NATO-US encroachment
Posted on April 15, 2014 by Ben Tanosborn
Sooner or later it had to happen; the West’s CIA imperial fingers had been playing with Pandora’s Box carelessly in Ukraine and the lid gave way: the box has been opened and the Un-Evil Empire is left buck naked internationally to face the truth. And the truth is clear, raw and simple no matter what machinated twists and turns of propaganda come out of the hawks’ nests in Washington to keep Americans brainwashed, ready to accept the warmongering ways of the nation’s powerful elite.
Although the Cold War with the USSR ended a quarter of a century ago, America has not acquiesced to just the spoils of an ideological victory over communism; no, that would be only a Pyrrhic victory, and American imperialism requires a much bigger prize. Thus, the constant encroachment—or fear of encroachment—thrust on Russia during all these years after Mr. Gorbachev’s celebrated gift of peace via his perestroika and glasnost; starting with the disbanding of the USSR-dominated Warsaw Pact, followed by the emancipation or breakup of the republics which made up the Soviet Union . . . and, finally, today, with the prospect of NATO holding sardonic military “vigilance” of Russia at her very own borders.
George Bernard Shaw may have been referring to the United Kingdom, or the British Empire, when he said truth telling is not compatible with the defense of the realm, but for all intents and purposes it can also apply to the America we live in today, or for that matter to Russia. So why act surprised when NATO-members (the US as its head) or Russia patently lie concerning past, present and future matters dealing with Ukraine?
Ukraine has been providing the buffer zone Russia has required for her own self-defense coupled with Russia’s constant reminder to the US that provocative “defensive” missile sites in the contiguous former Warsaw-Pact nations would be looked upon as intrusive . . . perhaps not even be tolerated.
Russia has been paying for years a hefty rent to Ukraine for this buffer role, mostly in energy subsidies and a somewhat subsidized large commercial trade, independent of the rental cost of having a naval base in Crimea. This symbiotic relationship which might be considered impartially as economically favoring Ukraine no doubt received Russia’s consent after added consideration for their Slavic sisterhood; the sizeable ethnic-Russian population living in Ukraine; and the cultural-linguistic ties which elevate the Russian language as the de facto co-lingua-franca in all Ukraine. (Even in Kiev, capital and largest city of 2.7 million, only one in eight people hold an ethnic-Russian bloodline; yet the latest survey ((2006)) indicated that about half of the Kievans speak Russian at home, while a quarter of them communicate in Ukrainian, and the other quarter alternate between Russian and Ukrainian.)
Even the most critically-benign who have followed Ukraine’s march from socialism to capitalism will agree that the metamorphosis has been chaotic, perhaps the worst in all the former Soviet republics; economic thuggery and corruption being the order of the day. Mafiosi-oligarchs were created who “inherited” the people’s wealth . . . and they came from ambidextrous corruption, from the right and from the left. The last two role-thug models being Yulia Tymoshenko, an ultra-nationalist, ethnic-Ukrainian and former prime minister; and the recently deposed-by-force prime minister, Viktor Yanukovych, ethnic-Russian, now living in exile in Russia.
And while these hyenic prowlers of the Ukrainian economy were amassing personal fortunes, that nation’s economy was marching in a straight line towards bankruptcy, where the nation finds itself today . . . even with a helping hand from its older sibling, Russia, in both commerce and energy subsidies. And that’s where the entire fiasco had its start, the EuroMaidan protests . . . the CIA finding willing players ready to stir things up, opening up a new possibility for the Pentagon to get American missiles closer to that hateful Kremlin and those sons-of- . . . Bolsheviks. However, the acumen of US intelligence experts was pulverized in a dash and, in a coup de balai, Vladimir Putin took control of the situation, peacefully and authoritatively, finding diplomatic language and reason in what he was doing, much in contrast to America’s trashy politicians. We vividly recall the insulting venom coming out of John Kerry, Hillary Clinton and the no-nothing legislators infesting Capitol Hill shepherded, as always, by Light-Brain-Heavy-Words “Doomsday” McCain.
Ukraine is likely to stay whole if Putin and reason prevail . . . but if America feels obliged to unnecessarily save face, look for pro-Russia Maidans extending throughout much of the land east of the 30th Meridian (Kharkiv, Donetsk, Dnipropetrovsk, Odessa . . . ), much of the population wishing to become part of Russia. And the European Union will inherit, or at least have at its doorstep, a small, unproductive beggar-Ukraine seeking help to subsist . . . help that will require added sacrifice to an EU still in economic dire straits.
One way or another we can be sure of one thing: Vladimir Putin will find a way to ascertain that the buffer zone Russia requires for her self-defense, free from US missiles, will remain intact. Almost 52 years ago, Kennedy was resolute in not letting Russian missiles be pointed at the US from Cuba . . . which most Americans scored as Kennedy 1-Khruschev 0. Let’s be practical this time and, instead of scoring Putin 1—Obama 0 . . . be fair and score it Kennedy 1—Putin 1. And let Ukraine find its own future.
© 2014 Ben Tanosborn
Ben Tanosborn, columnist, poet and writer, resides in Vancouver, Washington (USA), where he is principal of a business consulting firm. Contact him at ben@tanosborn.com.