Does Putin have a soul?

[Alex157]

It is me again

If Europe thinks its boundaries to be

inviolable

Well,

actually the US signed this treaty too

Modern Europe is only a little more enlightened, and they are

concerned more with economic unity than ethnic freedoms.

I

think that the US virtually have not such problems since the significant part of the native population died out (and

many were killed by European invaders) and now constitutes a very small percentage of total population.


As far as I know Europe does much for ethnic cultural freedoms but this

problem has not any solution from my point of view. If every nation has to have a state of its own – what should be

borders? If not, how I can have the same rights as the ‘title’ nation if I want to speak my ethnic language?

What you say makes

sense, if you consider "self-determination" to be a goal for a modern political philosophy.

No, I haven’t any

strict views of my own on the subject. I just think that if a territory has a right to separate, any part of it has

to have the same right. That’s only one thing I am saying. But it is impossible.

[SIZE=

3]--As for me I think nothing, but I am sure that if Russia begins to built

military bases in Cuba the US wouldn’t be too happy too.

[/SIZE]

--Ah, do

you interpret such actions through the lens of a Soviet camera? Or is the camera a modern Russian one? They are very

different. Is it so hard to understand "manoeuvres

defensif"?

I just think that nobody cannot be unbiased. Say, Mexicans will elect

somebody like Saakashvili and a civil war among different ethnic groups will begin (God forbid, of course).


I think that it would be difficult for the US not to interfere at all if

it happens at the US’s borders.

As another thought, what do

you think of the UN?

Nothing Rather, it is a bit better than nothing but the UN is

incapable to solve serious problems, I think.

As for my

pictures, they are only good "snapshots", and not artistically rendered. I will gather some and send them to you.

Great, I am waiting

for it : )

[Alex157]

There is a thread about

[COLOR=#0852

c6]Good Movies Lately[/COLOR]

here

Thanks a lot,

Greg. I am going to read it and post my questions

Let me know if you need any

help

No, no,

everything is OK Thank you!

What do you have on

your mind besides politics and great photography?

Money My main concern is how to get money from the Russian

Internet : ))

[idesign]

If every nation has to have a state of its own – what

should be borders? If not, how I can have the same rights as the ‘title’ nation if I want to speak my

ethnic language?

I understand and partially agree. The only problem is with old borders

drawn arbitrarily, without respect to major cultural/religious populations, as in the former Yugoslavia and

Albania. After the Soviet demise such things were inevitable I think. And then there was Milosevic, another small

problem.

No, I haven’t any strict views of my own

on the subject. I just think that if a territory has a right to separate, any part of it has to have the same right.

That’s only one thing I am saying. But it is impossible.

Self determinism is pretty

important as a foundation for a Democracy. But you are absolutely right about small indigenous groups. They will

not have the power to realize any independence of course.

I

just think that nobody cannot be unbiased. Say, Mexicans will elect somebody like Saakashvili and a civil war among

different ethnic groups will begin (God forbid, of course).
I think that

it would be difficult for the US not to interfere at all if it happens at the US’s borders.

Interesting analogy Alexey, especially in the light of your

comment about borders. Of course the US would have an interest in the outcome. That raises a question I have.

What is the international status of South Ossetia?

As you recognized, there is a cultural

difference between the north and south. If either area have an allegiance to Georgia or Russia then their political

sponsor has an obligation: Georgia in the south and Russian in the north. But I'm not sure of the dynamics of

these areas among their people, if you exclude powerful armies.

Going back to the subject of this thread

(remember that?) the west is becoming a little nervous of Putin for other reasons as well. We will

see.

Nothing

Rather, it is a bit better than nothing but the UN is incapable to solve serious problems, I think.

And are corrupt and political.

[Alex157]

I understand and partially agree. The only problem is with

old borders drawn arbitrarily, without respect to major cultural/religious populations, as in the former

Yugoslavia and Albania.

Major on minor?

After the Soviet

demise such things were inevitable I think.

Well, the same

problems are in Catalonia or the Country of Basques, for example.

And then there was

Milosevic, another small problem.

Yes, sure, but now there are another guys there.

Interesting analogy Alexey, especially in the light of your

comment about borders. Of course the US would have an interest in the outcome. That raises a question I have. What

is the international status of South Ossetia?

The same as of

Kosovo : ) It is a part of Georgia, of course.

As you

recognized, there is a cultural difference between the north and south.

Well, I don’t think

so. The only difference, I believe, is that there were many ethnic Georgians in South Ossetia, of course. As well as

there were quite enough Serbs in Kosovo. Of course, the difference is that some Serbs remain in Kosovo, but I think

that all Georgians were banished from South Ossetia and Abkhazia…

If either area have an allegiance to Georgia or Russia then their

political sponsor has an obligation: Georgia in the south and Russian in the north.

I think that the

main problem is that Russia is more tolerant to ethnic minorities than Georgia. Actually even as an Empire ethnic

minorities in Russia were much more equal to the main nation that in the Western Empires. Maybe because Russians

were mainly serf slaves so there were no difference for Czars :

)
Georgians want to make everybody Georgians and it is not OK with Abkazs

and Ossetins.

Going back to the subject of this thread (remember that?)

the west is becoming a little

nervous of Putin for other reasons as well. We will

see.

Yes, all

troubles at the Caucasus are only coming : ))

And are corrupt and political.

Well, Greg, what is not corrupt and political in the modern

world? : )

[idesign]

Hi Alex,
After finally getting

around to doing some more reading about Georgia, I have to agree with you. Saakashvili made a big mistake, and his

country paid a price. The Russian response may have been a little heavy-handed, but Putin is the kind of person who

likes to prove his point.

The discussion about Kosovo, Basques, ethnic sovereignty and such can be discussed

endlessly, and is probably one of the more interesting discussions available. Ethnic and religious tensions that

history ignored - or suppressed under a dictatorship - later become revolutions if they can, genocides if they're

very unlucky, or victims of re-suppression if they're only moderately unlucky. This ignores political tensions

which suddenly appear in the vacuum of a failed imperial tyranny such as the Soviets.

Considering all that, the

Balkans were a very old soup that boiled over after its last restraint was removed. It was going to happen, and the

Western powers had to make a choice. Recognizing Kosovo was not so much a matter of violating borders, but of

recognizing a new political landscape that they did not choose, but had to accept.

In sheer pragmatic terms, a

population must have the means to revolt in terms of capability, then it must have legitimacy in its political

sphere. These two rules prohibit many populations from breaking whatever "chains" they have, or perceive to

have.

On another note, I see that Putin, ooops, Medvedev wants to place missiles near Poland. Medvedev said that

he is counting on our new President to make "conciliatory gestures". What do you think of this? What do you think

of our new President?

[Alex157]

Greg hi,

After finally getting around to doing some more reading about Georgia, I have to agree

with you. Saakashvili made a big mistake, and his country paid a price.

Well, I remember a line from ‘Jackie Brown’. - Can you trust Melony? –

You can trust that Melony will be Melony.
Or something like this.

Saakashvili is Saakashvili and I think that it is a great mistake of the US government that it supports such guys.

Again, Hitler was elected democratically too.

On another note, I see that Putin,

ooops, Medvedev wants to place missiles near Poland. Medvedev said that he is counting on our new President to make

"conciliatory gestures". What do you think of this?

Nothing : ) As far as I know we have not military units to the west of

Moscow at all and all this is just a show. A good half of Russians are very anti-Western and I think that the

Kremlin guys just try to satisfy them.

What do you think of our new

President?

Well, I am glad that after Bush America chose something else For me it shows that

democracy works.
Much more a bit later – we are making our site and my

brains don’t work completely : )
What do YOU think of new President?

[belgareth]

What do YOU think of new President?

A

major mistake and disaster waiting to happen. McCain wasn't much better and I didn't vote for either of them. I

think we are in for some very bad times.

But then, I've been saying that for a long time and as predicted,

things have continued to worsen under each successive president. Obama's crazy ideas are just going to speed things

up.

[Mtnjim]

On another

note, I see that Putin, ooops, Medvedev wants to place missiles near Poland. Medvedev said that he is counting on

our new President to make "conciliatory gestures".

You might be too young to remember, but I would say

"Cuban missles in reverse."

[idesign]

You might

be too young to remember, but I would say "Cuban missles in reverse."

I think its apples and oranges. A

non-nuke defensive missile program in Europe, with full NATO support - in our current political climate - is much

different than Nikita K. trying to plant offensive nukes in a puppet state ruled by a certified gangster.

The

spirit of Che Guevara died its final death when the Soviets caved to JFK (btw, the last Democrat with balls), and

subsequent communist revolutions in the Americas died slower deaths as toilet paper became more and more scarce, but

in much higher demand. Or, you could say that the need to wipe one's ass properly became both a real and political

necessity with Castro wannabes running amok and attempting too late their plans for centrally-controlled paradises.

They missed the trend, and got caught with their ideology failing like an adolescent at the Mustang Ranch.



Castro just got lucky at just the right time with just the right amount of thuggery. The kind of thuggery that

won't pass the scrutiny of today's international scrutiny unless you're Castro, or Putin, which leads to the crux

of this thread which is Russia's new Tsar. Of course the big differnce between petty dictators and big ones are

big weapons. Which leads to a need to contain them.

[Mtnjim]

I think its

apples and oranges. A non-nuke defensive missile program in Europe, with full NATO support - in our current

political climate - is much different than Nikita K. trying to plant offensive nukes in a puppet state ruled by a

certified gangster.

It might not look so different through Russian eyes.