Hearing from a Russian citizen
I interviewed Tanya Bukharina yesterday on my public access TV show that has been playing on local stations across Maine for the past 16 years.
Tanya is from Yalta, Crimea, Russia and we talked about the 2014 referendum where about 97% of voters said they wanted to leave Ukraine and return to Russia. (About 81% eligible citizens voted in the referendum.)
I asked Tanya if Putin and Russia want to recreate the former Soviet Union and take over the world as the US and NATO have repeated claimed. She of course laughed at the suggestion and reminded me that when she took me around Crimea last October during my trip to Russia there were construction projects all over the place. Her point - Russia is investing in building not destroying.
If you, like me, are fact oriented then please consider the simple truth that Washington spends about one trillion dollars a year on its war machine in comparison to Moscow which spends about $60 billion a year on their military. In fact Russia has cut their military budget the last two years in order to help deal with poverty across their nation. Don't we wish we had a government in the US that would do the same?
Tonight here in Brunswick we are holding a pot luck supper for Tanya (although a big snow storm is to begin about the same time as the supper). On Sunday, Feb 17, she has a public speaking event at the local library in Brunswick. I know of some people driving all the way from Boston (3 hours away) to hear Tanya speak. Should be great.
We don't often get the chance to have speakers from Russia visit us but I can't think of a more important time than now to do just that. The lies, demonization of Putin and Russia, and the escalation of US-NATO encirclement of Russia is worse than even during the Cold War days.
While I don't trust the mainstream corporate controlled media I still keep an eye on it. (The great 60's activist Abbie Hoffman once spoke at a Florida Coalition for Peace & Justice retreat I organized in the late 1980's and he asked us, "If you don't watch TV how the hell can you know what the American people are thinking?") I've never before seen the kind of non-stop recycled red-baiting that is going on these days.
When I take a group of Global Network and Veterans For Peace members to Russia in the spring for a study tour we will also visit Crimea and Tanya will be our guide.
Americans have been taught to viscerally hate and fear everything
Russia. We thank Tanya for coming to help humanize the good people of
her country.
Bruce
Photo by Regis Tremblay
posted by Bruce K. Gagnon | 3:02 PM
3 Comments:
Bruce,
I thought I might be the only one who has for YEARS said that Russia was only our enemy insofar as we screwed with them and their territories. I don't believe that the Russian government and Putin are lily white any more than I believe the same of our government and president. But Putin is NOTHING like the American press colors him to be. And he has done a great deal of good for the Russian people including unshackling of the nation from the Rothschild money changers. I have not seen a U.S. president with guts enough to do the same.
Some days I think I would rather live in Russia than here now. Isn't that a shame? (I know I will get a lot of flack from the clueless on that last remark)
God Bless your works and deeds. Educating your fellow Americans is an awesome thing to do. I for one appreciate what you do!
Thanks Anonymous, I agree with you all the way. Also appreciate the words of support. Best your way.
This may be the only thing I think you are on the right track with at the moment, that being said I see little reason for the US not to be allies with Russia and the media spends much effort on misleading the American people about Russia and its intentions on the world stage. Many of our values as people are aligned and we face many of the same issues as well. Perhaps the largest of these is we are the only two nations keeping the globalists from having their way. (which is a large part of why the media puts forth this effort. bear in mind, members of the mainstream media have come right out and said that they feel that their job is to influence public opinion, as opposed to reporting the news, let that sink in a bit) it must be noted that the statements on defense spending are misleading. Although it is true that Russia spends fewer dollars on defense, they spend a higher percentage of their GDP, things of this nature have to be examined completely as opposed to being cherry-picked in order to see them accurately. if one takes an unbiased approach it becomes obvious that the loudest voices in opposition to Russia are also the loudest voices in favor of globalism. This is no coincidence. The road is diverging before us and I feel that now more than ever, the choices we make will determine if we choose a path that leads to peace or war, on a larger scale. It is also unclear which will lead us to a better place or misery and suffering for the majority of the world. (that cannot be seen as easily as one might instinctively think) One thing is certain, however, which is if the path is chosen without wisdom, we are doomed to fail. Wisdom requires dedication to the truth (knowledge) which must be considered carefully and it is not what most think it is. To seek knowledge to support your own beliefs or ideology will set you on the wrong path. To seek knowledge to make yourself feel better, or for the gain of anything besides knowledge itself will do the same. Knowledge must be sought for its own sake to produce wisdom and cannot produce wisdom when viewed through the lens of preconception. wisdom cannot be gained unless you dedicate yourself to following where knowledge leads, regardless of your feelings. without adherence to these principles, you will be unable to find the tue path.
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