Posted on 07/05/2018 6:59:19 PM PDT by Nextrush
I don’t follow your point. Presumably Skripal was spying for the West when caught by the Russians. If the British “paid” the high price of 3 -1/3 Russian spies for one Russian spying for the West, they must have valued him, or more likely, wanted to demonstrate to other current and potential spies in their employ that Britain would go to great lengths to “get them out” if caught. Failing to protect the ex-spies you already bought so dearly sends the opposite message.
It appears that the British thought they had an understanding with the Russians about this sort of thing, and let their guard down. Whether the Russians were responding to the British cheating in some other aspect (for instance by trying to recruit new spies in Russia too aggressively, etc.), or the Russians decided to assert themselves, the British let it happen on their turf.
Yeah, all the other Presidents consorted with the Russians and with the various Russian dictators over the years but Trump isn’t supposed to, right? Wrong. And the Russians had little to nothing to do with our elections. It was all made up by Obama, Hillary who actually DID collude with Russians by selling them our uranium in exchange for contributions to her and her corrupt husband’s Clinton foundation, and the DNC who all colluded to bring down Trump after he won the 2016 election.
That wasn’t supposed to have happened, Trump winning, so the Dem elites, with their willing accomplices the FBI, CIA, NSA, DOJ, and the swamp infested State Dept. sprang into action to undermine our Republic with their treasonous soft coup attempt against Trump. And you and other gullible fools blame Russia. If I were Putin, I’d be real PO’d. Trump knows who his real enemy is, and it lies in the swamp in D.C., not in Russia.
By the way, the Crimea was a Russian territory for many, many years, its inhabitants are Russian speaking primarily, and most of them are of Russian lineage, not Ukrainian. Russian Dictator Nikita Kruschev, who was half Ukrainian, in the 60’s up and gave the Crimea to Ukraine as a “gift”. No consultation with the Russians he ruled over. The vast majority of Crimeans are happy to be back in the traditional Russian fold now. Polls of them say so. Just ask them. They have come home to Mother Russia.
Kruschev simply gave away the main warm water port of the Russian Navy, as Russia has few ports that are not ice laden, to Ukraine. It has always stuck in the Russian craw that Kruschev did this and Russia has always considered Crimea as Russian, not part of the Ukraine who got Crimea purely by default. Learn your Russian history.
When Ukraine via a coup to overthrow Ukraine’s Russian leaning leader, organized with the not so secret backing of the Western powers, to take control of the Ukrainian gov’t (the Ukrainians by the way are as corrupt, ruthless and thuggish as any in Russia) that was a step too far for Putin and Russia, and he wasn’t going to cede his military warm water port where much of the Russian navy is located (the port was being leased to them by Ukraine) over to Western control and interests via a new western leaning Ukrainian gov’t.
So for good and rational reasons Russia went in and recovered what historically had been her own territory anyhow until Kruschev single handily out of a grudge against the Russians he ruled over gave Crimea away as a present to Ukraine. I, for historical and strategic reasons, would have done the same thing as did Putin to wrest Crimea away from Ukraine and back to Russia .
But you never hear this background Russian narrative in the Western press as to the reasons behind their actions in taking back Crimea, do you. It doesn’t fit the Western narrative on how they want Russia and Putin to be portrayed, does it.
Putin is no fool, and he protects his Country’s interests, as he is a proud Russian nationalist, just as Trump is our Country’s proud American nationalist. Trump instinctively understands the benefits of strategically allying with Russia where possible; you don’t. That’s why you choose to ally with the Condoleezza Rice school of Bushbot globalist international thought and I never will, thank you.
One thing I appreciate about Russian people (despite their State propaganda) is their acceptance of complexity. - I wish that American culture would take note.
Neither the mainstream Western nor Russian narrative on Crimea is adequate. The elements of the situation are complex, and there is no point in scrambling to take clear sides either way.
That is why Bush’s policies in the Middle East so often proved disastrous.
However some things ARE simple and it’s important to capitalize on clear truths when they present themsleves. Like the fact of Jerusalem. And of it being Israel’s capital. - Yet no president until Trump was brave enough to formally acknowledge this. And his courage in validating this reality will have positive consequences for the surrounding region in the long term.
Regarding Europe:
The “European Union” created in the 70s is not the same as classical, Christian “Europe.” No point in conflating the two. One can be pro-European yet against the E.U.
And within each country in Europe: there are all sorts of dynamics at work and not every leader who says the hip and trendy anti-Muslim comment of the day is automatically a hero - nor should we abandon all our historic allies because they’re in turmoil or crises. That’s a trick of the devil.
We shouldn’t stop believing in America just because the Deep State appears to be tearing it apart from the inside. That’s like saying one should not be a Christian because of all the corruptions and wars religious authorities have been defined by for centuries. Christianity is about Jesus, not its faulty institutions.
And Putin’s Kleptocracy and phony Christianity is no Trump’s America.
President Trump would do well to overfly londonistan, have the pilot wag AF1 wings over the British parliament and the insulting blimp over it and go on to check out the Scottish golf courses as he radios Theresa May that he might reschedule a visit when her and other government leaders stop the nonstop attacks and the Brits can get a handle on their rogue nerve agents that seem to sit all over the country waiting for someone to touch it. Going into that hostile atmosphere with blatant verbal/visual constant insults in the hosting country's government for a State visit is just unwise by any measure.
“And Putin’s Kleptocracy and phony Christianity is no Trump’s America.”
And you know Putin is a phony Christian how? Can you see inside his soul, like George Bush 43 said he did, Condoleezza? Is that how you know he’s a phony Christian?By the way, Putin wears a cross around his neck that his Christian mother gave him, lo so many years ago when young.
And Putin brought the Russian Orthodox Church back to official legal and religious status, along with providing state funding for renovations of many of Russia’s churches that were in varying degrees of disrepair. He restored the Russian Church to prominence, and now huge swathes of Russians once again attend Church services and profess a faith in God as opposed to the atheistic Commie party line that was the substitute State religion.
One of the reasons Putin supports the Assad regime is that Assad has always given safe harbor to his Christian minority in Syria, one of a handful of Muzzie heads of state to do so. Not so with the Assad opposition forces, many of whom are terrorists and/or ISIS militia, who would murder Christians at the drop of a mitered hat if allowed to take over Syria as John McCain wants in his support for these Syrian opposition forces. McCain will never see these terrorist cronies of his in power, for which I am grateful.
They are far worse in so many respects than the Assad regime and his military that are trying to prevent them from ever attaining that power.
Under Assad, Syria was a reasonably cosmopolitan State, lenient to its minorities. Under the opposition, Syria would be reduced to a terrorist controlled Muzzie religious dictatorship and intolerant State.
You know very little but spout off a lot about Putin and Russia and what a bad guy he allegedly is, when we consort and have relations with other countries and their leaders far worse than Russia (China and N. Korea come to mind). Oh, by the way, Putin is extremely popular amongst the Russian people. He will go down in the annals of Russian history as one of her greatest leaders. I am of French, Irish and German heritage, not Russian, so I have no ethnic dog in this fight except for what would be best for our own Country’s interests, IMO, when dealing with Putin and Russia.
Putin wears a cross? So does socialist Pope Francis! A bigger one!
Your world timeline begins with Soros/McCain and ends with Putin/Assad saving the day. Yet, ALL those men have done their part to screw with the world for the worse and the lines separating them are blurred.
But you have every right to cling to the narrative if it’s what helps the world make better sense to you. Disenchanted American Lefties did the same during the Cold War - cheering on Soviet Russia. And only those who experienced it for themselves were able to separate myth from fact.
Disenchanted Righties still suffering from Bush-Obama PTSD are behaving the same. Except instead of blaming “capitalist imperialism” for all of life’s woes, the buzzword phrase is “neocon globalism.”
But it doesn’t matter what myths people make. Because like the USSR, the Putin kleptocracy is set to implode too. Without any outside help mind you. All in the Lord’s time. Reality always finds a way to bite back.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.