I know Wall Street is crumbling, but Washington needs to start paying attention:
Putin’s in bed with Hugo Chavez.
North Korean Nukes are back in business.
Iran is keeping on keeping on.
Pakistan is playing chicken with US Troops in Afghanistan.
Turkey playing war games against Kurds in Iraq.
President Bush will most certainly go down in history as the worst President in American History and one of the worst leaders of all time.
NATO is stepping up and telling Russia to cool its jets. Russia has threatened military action against Georgia for almost a week now due to tension with two breakaway provinces on the Russian-Georgian border.
I’ll say it again: Russia needs to be put back in its place. Putin is a bit too cock-sure. And the West has stood back and let this happen. You know the old saying: the road to hell is paved with good intentions.
Azerbaijan has prevented a shipment of Russian nuclear equipment from getting to Iran. Pretty damn good news if you asked me. It’s going to take more than the United States or France to reign in Iranian Mullahs (not to mention circumnavigating Putin’s rogue policies). Thank you, Azerbaijan!
Russia, being the maverick she is, is refusing to cap its greenhouse gas emissions. Isn’t that the most glorious news? But, seriously, Russia is really refusing to cap its greenhouse gas emissions. Ummm …
I mean, the world puts up with a lot of ridiculous bs when it comes to Russia. We allow her to think she is part of the G-8. We try to treat her like any other First World “Democracy”. We console her as she cries watching her old “allies” defect from the East and realign themselves with Europe, NATO and the US. We try to treat Russia as if it were on an equal playing field with the rest of the industrialized world. And everyone knows its a load of bull.
But the world cannot continue to play into Russia’s distorted self-image and allow the country to blow off initiatives to combat global warming.
We stand back as the country curbs free speech and intimidates and kills its journalists.
We look away as their leader consolidates power through thuggery and manipulation, as the government gobbles up industry and media - silencing any opposition through violence and imprisonment.
We remain neutral as the Kremlin conducts assassination attempts on its whistle blowing defectors in London.
We watch on casually as she threatens her neighbors (allies of the US) with war and expels foreign diplomats and makes trade deals with our enemies.
And we raise no flags when Russia bullies Europe by threatening to cut off its oil supply.
This can be tolerated no longer. Russia needs to be brought in line. As one of the most polluted places on earth, with 100+ acre “dead zones” due to industrial waste and mismanagement, Russia’s environmental policy effects us all.
The carbon and other greenhouse gases which Russia spews with abandon is breathed by everyone all over the planet - especially in the northern hemisphere. Their air is our air and vice versa. Get it?
Russia needs to fall in step with the rest of the civilized world and take steps to reduce her carbon emissions
Otherwise, we need to stop pretending that Russia is a friend, an ally, a legitimate power or a dominate player on the world stage. We need to stop pretending that Putin’s Russia is nothing more than an authoritarian state in capitalist drag. Bad capitalist drag.
Can you smell the sarcasm? Once again, the Kremlin has tightened its iron grip around the throat of Russian journalism. It’s sort of like you can lead a horse to water (tear down the Berlin Wall) but you can’t make it drink (expect the Russian people to embrace democracy and a free and unbiased press) - or something along those lines.
Just like in the good old days of the USSR, the “Democratic” Kremlin (Under Vladimir Putin’s steel-tipped boot) is firmly in control. And if you say, write, print or broadcast anything to the contrary expect to have your lights put out (literally and figuratively).
