We explore real-life reformation here in this informed, online community.
After the big interview, I said to my wife, "I wish I could have briefed Putin before the interview on how best to connect with Americans and what to be sure not to leave out."
I think he missed an opportunity to document some of the most critical information on Ukrainian war crimes committed against Russia prior to The Special Military Operation of 2022.
But perhaps President Putin would have replied to me, "Mr. Botkin, thank you for your advice, but you fail to understand just how irrelevant America has become in serious discussions about foreign policy and world affairs. My interest is not in "connecting" with Americans, but in speaking to the hundreds of millions in those nations which did not join the West in sanctions against Russia. They listen carefully to what I say, even my lengthy history lessons."
This reality may have been best summarized by the writer SIMPLICIUS in the following post:
SIMPLICIUS Ѱ @simpatico771
"Westoids complaining about Putin's interview being too pedantic have an inflated sense of self-worth: they assume the interview is primarily designed to appeal to them. Little do they know the West has become so irrelevant that it's no longer even necessarily the chief intended audience for Putin's transmissions.
"For instance, many of Putin's statements go viral in China, generating hundreds of millions or even billions of views/impressions on sites like Weibo, vastly larger engagements than the entire population of most of the West combined. In the east, where the citizenry is learned, historically-literate, etc., Putin's longueurs are actually appreciated, dissected, and discussed. This is particularly the case in China, where the majority of people are not only history buffs, but have a sacred respect for history and tradition.
"In the West, Putin's words may fall on deaf ears and be drowned out by illiterate popculture noise, but the West is no longer relevant to the world. In other places, Putin's words will reverberate, consummating their intended effects."
11:06 PM · Feb 8, 2024
Note date and time. Mr. Trump just threatened to blow up Iranian power plants if the Strait is not opened within 48 hours.
Apparently Iran responded, indicating a willingness to do so if Mr. Trump agrees to these conditions:
America will end the war with
— Guarantees of no future wars
— Closure of US military bases in region
— Compensation/war reparations to Iran from both US and Israel
— ’End wars on all fronts in region’
— Establishment of a new legal regime for Strait of Hormuz
— Prosecution and extradition of individuals affiliated with ‘hostile media’ to Iran
In February, America cut off negotiations just prior to a sudden missile barrage. Will that happen again? The world is watching the countdown.
Are people of the twenty-first century too messed up to love one another, sacrifice for one another, or to mature in the presence of difficulty?
For modern marriages, three decades of therapeutic counselling trends are bearing destructive fruit. It's an ongoing revolt against maturity. Sanctification is today a foreign concept, even in the Evangelical world.
What do people count as relational wisdom today? Fighting for your own personal "rights"...and winning in the process. Perfecting clever snarkiness. Outdoing one another in selfishness. Juxtaposing personal dreams and ambitions against another's personal dreams and ambitions.
The way forward when life together gets unbearable? Grumble to a "counselor." Or, if you're tech-savvy, crowd source your therapy. Pour out all your grudges and aversions on the internet, in the guise of "getting a little perspective" [and advice from the mob.]
Today the internet mob is a feedback loop which has become a death spiral -- a chorus...
