The fish is rotting from the head for the second time in Russian history, Eidman says

[lanlady]

9. Russia is a failing state. Ukraine, at least, has a chance at a future

Russian villages are emptying out; men are poisoning themselves with vodka; the country reached negative population growth this year; it produces nothing - ничего - that the world wants to buy (except some weapons); its oligarchs have literally stripped the country of its natural wealth and robbed citizens of their future.

But lets give credit where credit is due. Russia is very good at: spying, subterfuge, chicanery, agitprop, political repression, blackmail, international money-laundering, and stealing other countries' territory (you have it all backwards - Russia steals from Ukraine, not the other way around).

Russians perceive themselves as being screwed by the West? That is because Russian leaders have been feeding them that bullshit for centuries. Because the despots in the Kremlin, whether they're tsars, Bolsheviks, or post-Soviet kleptocrats, don't want the Russian people looking to the West for help to reform the rotten and corrupt cesspool that is the Russian political system.

Ukraine is trying to pull itself out from under decades of Moscow's malevolent rule. It's rough going and it might not succeed, but it has no other choice than to try to join the European family of nations. Ukrainians do not want to be part of Russia or under its thumb. Gee, I wonder why?

By the way, who made you the arbiter of nationhood, Холодно? You are flat wrong on Ukraine. It is a nation. I know that's hard for Russians to accept, but too damn bad. Ukraine has its own national identity, history, pride, and its own (quite beautiful) language. Here's a novel idea for Moscow - leave Ukraine alone, and concentrate your attention on solving Russia's vast demographic, economic, and societal problems.