Good News from Kyrgyzstan

Following up on this post: The US and Kyrgyzstan have finally agreed to a deal that will allow the US to continue using their Kyrgyz air base.

That's good news on the Afghanistan war front, since the base serves as a main supply line for those efforts. As long as we're there, we'd better darn well be able to get supplies to our troops.

UFSSR

I'm calling it the "Union of Former Soviet Socialist Republics."

I'm not even kidding.

Several formerly-Soviet countries are joining ranks with - where else but Russia - for purposes of "defense." Ordinarily, alliances shouldn't be problematic, but when the leader of that alliance is openly antagonistic to the US, they present cause for concern.

Now, to be fair, Kyrgyzstan is offering to save us the trouble of maintaining our base there. We only use it to get troops into Afghanistan, after all.

How do you say, "déjà vu" in Russian?

(Honestly, it'd be cool to know how to say...)

Remember that invasion of Georgia by Russia a little while ago? And how it was - in large part - about Russia's control of gas to Europe? I mean, after nationalizing the gas industry, international competition was the next logical step, I suppose... especially added to other, more swagger-y, motivations.

At any rate, they've started to strong-arm Europe - again - by cutting off gas supplies. (h/t: Drudge, who's finally taken that indecent upside-down skier pic off his site, LOL... must've been a slow news day yesterday.)

It's not the first time they've done it.

And it's not a coincidence that this is happening while our oil & gas prices are low. Low oil prices (ha - and Marx thought *religion* was the opiate of the masses?) are good for us, since we use so much imported oil; but they're very, very bad for Russia, who exports it. Put that struggling, oil-dependent economy, (even worldwide economic dollar issues aside), together with a populace that largely worships a KGB dictator, and we're looking at a very desperate, cornered bear.

Gives a whole new meaning to the term, "Bear Market," doesn't it?

Free Speech in Russia

After violently suppressing freedom of the press, Putin is looking to silence ALL freedom of speech in Russia.

Any criticism of Russia's government would be treason, according to a bill he's sponsoring in the Russian Parliament.

Why?

Alexeyeva said the government was pushing the law quickly to head off possible protests resulting from the global financial crisis, which has hit Russia hard.

"The people ruling the government are afraid of the reaction of its citizens to their inability to cope with the crisis," she said.

This is a very, VERY bad thing. Fear on not only the citizens' part, but also the government's, is a powerfully dangerous ingredient to add to an easily-combustible situation.

Let's make sure that we stand up lest the same thing happen here; and pray for our brothers and sisters in Russia.

Might Want to Keep an Eye on This...

After palling around (officially, AGAIN) with just about every Central & South American country that isn't in love with the USA, Russia is actually sending ships to Cuban waters.

Notice the price of oil right now? (Chalk another one up for "Glenn Beck's Early News" since I started pointing them out...) They're collapsing, scared, and ready to fall back into the familiar swaddling of a dictatorial straitjacket... think I'm kidding?

The naval manoeuvres close to US waters are seen as a riposte to Washington's own moves in Russia's Soviet-era sphere of influence, including in the Black Sea.

Hmm. Their policy people are still living in the Soviet era. A happy, liberal, peaceful, prosperous golden age for them, right? Well, lest we forget the stunning Soviet quality of workmanship, (*ahem* - have you seen K-19: The Widowmaker?), they've been dealing with this lately:

...inadvertent fatal poisoning last month of 20 people aboard a Russian nuclear-powered submarine that was undergoing tests off the Pacific coast.

So... what that tells me, is that it might not even matter whether their subs could still launch a missile; all they'd have to do is explode at us.

I'm so grateful that I'm not in the Russian Navy right now...

What an Opportunity, Indeed.

Communists in Russia are excited that people will feel threatened enough by world events to re-install their totalitarian rulers. I mean, they're really back with Putin and Medvedev, anyway, (and engineered conflicts with, say... Georgia?), but 'ooh! People might take someone who still carries the actual party name if they get desperate enough!' To quote:

Gennady Zyuganov told the party's annual congress the Communists should make maximum use of the growing public discontent caused by the economic downturn to try to restore their political strength.

Gee, who else has recently said that he should never let a crisis go to waste? (Hint: "a cross between a hemorrhoid and a toothache.")

[h/t: Drudge]

A Good Reason to Care Whether We're Becoming Russia

The latest in an evil series.

The article lists previous incidents, as well, but the latest is that yet another journalist has been attacked for investigating corruption in Russia. Just local government, so there was no Polonium involved... "just" thugs.

Perestroika? Hmm...

Drudge has linked to an article about Gorbachev's recommendation for President-elect Obama: PERESTROIKA.

Hmm.

(Showing age...) I was fairly young when Gorbachev came to power, but I remember hearing perestroika and glasnost and some other seldom-used member of that triad... and I remember that they were "good things."

Anyway, that word caught my attention, and I looked it up.

Here's Wikipedia's definition:

the Russian term (now used in English) for the economic reforms introduced in June 1987^[1] by the Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev. Its literal meaning is "restructuring", referring to the restructuring of the Soviet economy.

And here's another - from Gorbachev himself in 1987 - read the whole thing if you're up for night terrors:

...overcoming the stagnation process, breaking down the braking mechanism, creating a dependable and effective mechanism for acceleration of social and economic progress and giving it greater dynamism

...utmost respect for the individual

...the revival and development of the principles of democratic centralism in running the national economy, the universal introduction of economic methods

...a resolute shift to scientific methods

...the combination of the achievements of the scientific and technological revolution with a planned economy

...ever better satisfaction of the Soviet people's requirements for good living and working conditions, for good rest and recreation, education and health care.

...elimination from society of the distortions of socialist ethics

ACK!!! Run like the wind, people!!!

*ahem... regaining composure* Let's take some of these one at a time:

• "Breaking down the braking mechanism?" You mean, like what's left of our divinely-inspired Constitution's checks and balances? In favor of "accelerat[ing]... social and economic progress?" Bad idea, especially since it depends on who's allowed to define, "progress."
  
• Combining science and technology with a planned economy? It's not too far from those words to "eugenics."
• Satisfying "people's requirements for good living and working conditions, for good rest and recreation, education and health care" - like FDR's Second Bill of Rights?
• Eliminating "the distortions of socialist ethics" - (I'm assuming he's not referring to the distortions that ARE socialist ethics...) - that sure sounds like shutting down criticism and silencing disagreement, to me.

We must fight these things!!!

Granted, from reading up on it at Wikipedia, it seemed to be a move in the right direction, the way it was sold: freeing up the economy - to a point. Freeing up political discourse - to a point.

But everything was still ultimately under state control - it seems like the populist Gorbachev and his glasnost were able to make the people (and world media) happier about it, though.

Let's be careful what we let ourselves be made happy about, because "utmost respect for the individual" is incongruous with the rest of those definitions.

"Gangland Diplomacy?"

Aw, HAY-ick no...

[Russia is wandering the world and happens to end up in the Caribbean... all this to play nice with Venezuela? See article here...]

Just for the Record

I know it's been a few days, but I feel obliged to blog that there is telephonic (?) evidence that Russia was indeed the aggressor in the latest Russo-Georgian conflict.

Meaning: Russia had tanks rolling into South Ossetia before Georgia did anything.

Just for the record.

Georgia Updates, from a Georgian

via Blackfive:

Part One
Part Two

Please take time to read them - it's critical to really understanding the context of the conflict and what Russia's doing over there.

It's not about "what's good for the goose is good for the gander" and self-determination; it's about Russia seeking to destroy and likely retake a democratic sovereign nation by amping up and using the potential divisions within it to pave the way for a not-very-subtle invasion (because: a, they're mad that Georgia broke away; b, Stalin was a Georgia boy, so there's a streak of nationalism; and c) Georgia was standing up and getting around the Russian energy monopoly on the continent).

So... for more history and a fuller human side, please check out those links - they're indispensable.

We'll Pay a Price, Too

From some of the latest at Blackfive:

I fear that Georgia, Poland, the Ukraine ..., and the Baltic states may well pay a very real price for desiring autonomy and aligning with the West, and for standing up to Putin.

Evil dictators will always try to destroy free(-er) countries in order to maintain and expand their own power.

Putin is an evil* dictator** who most likely only handed over the "presidency" of Russia to avoid paperwork.

I know the situation is more complex when we look at every single possible consequence, but there is no doubt in my mind that standing up for free countries against evil dictators (or, for that matter, opposing evil dictators at every step of the way) is necessary and right.

So, while we know that Poland, Georgia, Ukraine, and pretty much anyone else over there who's got a spine will be feeling some serious Russian heat, I know we'll be paying a price, too, if we stick to our guns - and we should stick to them. I am in no way trivializing what our friends in Eastern Europe are going through. I'm just sure that the conflict is going to broaden. Greatly.

___
* Evil: "former" KGB; threatening, poisoning, and murdering "former" associates and political opponents; selling arms to rogue nations; and so much more...
** Dictator: quashing opposition (through legislation for businesses, and generally murder for individuals and journalists); cutting off oil supplies to the EU in winter to get his way; threatening other countries for making up their own minds; installing a puppet president; propping up other dictators' regimes; and so much more...

W00T to Pres. Bush!

For calling out Russia on their invasion of Georgia!!!

Specifically, mentioning "our solidarity with the Georgian people."

Better a little late than never, eh?

Powerline has a transcript.

Update: Blackfive has a good write-up & links to others.

All In Favor?

Understatement of the century: "Russia appears to want the Georgian government overthrown."

Who saw that one coming? I mean, waiting until the Olympics and then invading a former slave of the USSR through a friendly rogue province... who knew they were going to take over the capital?

All in favor of Pres. Bush (or maybe the internationally-lauded "Citizen of the World" that is Obama) getting creative and performing a international citizens' arrest on Putin, please say, "Aye."