A lecture on the Russian Question

Another event at the Wordsmithy festival in Moscow Idaho, a lecture I gave on the Russian question 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q6pN6WeulxU

Its message will be familiar to anyone who has read my article on the same issue in 'First Things' 

Comments

[Roy Robinson]

Vladamir Putin who according to our foreign secretary heads a country which is fast becoming a pariah state is currently at the BRICS meeting in India conferring with Mohdi and XI Jingping.The Brics have a total population of over two and a half billion people.Russia has just clinched a massive arms,nuclear,energy deal with India.Nothing about this of course in any of the TV news.In the West we increasingly live in the sort of media bubble that they used to live in the old Soviet bloc whose citizens had to search for the truth where they could find it. .

[Kevin 1]

@ louiseyvette

There's a Danish band called Mew and they invented a name for that. They call those people "Frengers." It's a portmanteau word Friends+ strangers. Check out Frengers on wikipedia for further details. That's the closest I can get to answering your question.

[Kevin]

Although I often disagree with PH on various topics, I believe his analytical grasp of foreign affairs based on years of overseas experience and having visited and observed many different cultures is a breath of fresh air. He approaches this topic from a standpoint which is not partisan and does not follow any particular dogma. I try and determine an opinion from a cross section of 'biased' sources to reach I hope is a fair and balanced opinion. BBC and to be fair all of our TV outlets report from mainstream perspective. Do we hear much about rebel attacks on Western Aleppo which has killed civilians or Saudi Arabia's slaughter of civilians in the Yemen? You have to go to RT (Russia Today) for that, but of course they are heavily biased against the west. I would like to see a radio/TV show hosted by PH and his guests to debate the issues from a less partisan standpoint. In the meantime we have to rely on YouTube.

[david wiseacre]

@Steve Armstrong
I am sure that despite the fall in Sterling which our host discusses in a previous blog that he continues to have his salary paid in British pounds and not roubles. Unless you have facts to back your assertion best not to make such insinuations.
***PH Notes: I am grateful to Mr Wiseacre, but really he need not worry. Allegations of this sort rebound on those who make them, who end up looking silly and spiteful. If Mr Armstrong had any evidence, he would produce it, or someone else would. ****

[Michael Wood]

I see Clinton is boldly trumpeting her (the US's) exceptionalism.
I often say it these days - there is a God - now watch the mighty fall!

The only true exceptionalism I can see now is how Putin is elevating Russia proudly up and onto the high ground of international affairs as it bravely protects a badly injured near neighbour from the repugnant tyranny of Clinton's US dogs of war.

[TERENCE COURTNADGE]

Mikhail Gorbachev to the (former) USSR was the FW DeKlerk to the dying days of apartheid South Africa ; they both gradually dismantled their respective tyrannical regimes at their own speed and bravely resisted any pressure to speed things up that could have led to chaos followed by a worse kind of tyranny. Perhaps one inspired the other.

[David Taylor]

Steven Armstrong .
I think it is possible to admire aspects of another country & culture or person , without any need for suspicion .
Russia and its people are admirable in many ways .
It has produced some of the worlds greatest literature and music and a number of influential thinkers .
It , like the UK is a very proud Nation .
Its less of a threat to the west than we are being led to think .
Its defence spending is much less then the US .

[AJ Wentworth]

If only you had been my university professor.

[Steven Armstrong]

I'd not be surprised if Hitchens turned out to be a Russian operative - turned on his moved to Russia many moons ago...

****PH laughs: Indeed, Mr Armstrong speaks the truth. He would indeed not be surprised if this were so. This tells us quite a lot about the crude workings of his mind, his willingness to trade in baseless slanders, and his ignorance of me. ****

[louiseyvette]

Conventional wisdom is a tough thing to overcome. That's the point of the following. I tried to point out to a friend on (anti)social media that Russia may not be as bad as she thinks (ie not 'expansionist') and was eventually told I'm an idiot *if* I think Russia is benign. I didn't exactly use the word 'benign', but even making a modest attempt at countering the accepted narrative was met with more 'frankness' (her term) or 'incivility' (my term) than I was expecting.

Arguably, even two fairly intelligent, normally reasonable women ought not to discuss politics, because we're in danger of having a personal falling out, and more likely to be upset about it, but still, one can't just sit by and let people succumb. We did both agree that Clinton was wanting to provoke a war with Russia, and this is bad, but she just couldn't see that she was 1. blindly accepting the narrative and 2. in need of at least hearing an alternate POV. I'd despair, but it's against my religion.

Btw, does anyone know if there is a word which means more than an acquaintance, but less than a friend? I have a few of these, and she is one.

[Alan Thomas]

A well balanced summary of the West V Russia situation. I do hope Boris has read it.

[DH Lull]

Dear Mr Hitchens,

The podcast for the 4th plenary talk of Wordsmithy 2016 featuring author Walter Kirn on writing essays can now be found by searching with Google for:

"walter kirn" "wordsmithy 2016 Plenary talk #4"

Regards,
DH Lull