Russia's Sisyphean Loop
A tremendous, if long, post over at the Sublime Oblivion blog that details the history of Russia from it's pre Ivan IV (the Terrible) phase through the rise of Putin in the post- Communist era. The author contends that Russia is constantly going through its own "Sisyphean Loop", "which all its attempts to Westernize – for a panoply of economic, cultural, and political reasons – merely end returning it to its imperial Eurasian past-and-future."
A great piece. I do not know if I would agree on every point, but I think this has a great deal of accuracy from an overarching perspective.
A great piece. I do not know if I would agree on every point, but I think this has a great deal of accuracy from an overarching perspective.
In describing physical geography's constraints upon Russian economics, I've found a reason to hope that global warming is real (University of East Anglia's "climategate" notwithstanding) and, if so, that it continues (why attempt to stop it in its tracks when the fossil record proves that both biodiversity and biomass were greatest during Earth's warm periods?). If food production in Russia would improve with a warmer climate, and if an ice-free Arctic Ocean would suddenly transform Russia's transportation handicap into a logistical boon, then, by following the reasoning of the linked article's author, Russia would enjoy the same conditions America enjoyed in its path to an open capitalist economy. Russia could then afford to use a sweet-as-honey approach toward its neighbors as it would seek trading partners and consumer markets for its newly found production capacity and newly found maritime distribution systems. Russia could finally afford to discard its iconic bearish image and militaristic bullying. Bring on global warming!
Reply to this