Russia’s anti-U.S. sentiment now is even worse than it was in Soviet Union

[Flash Walken]

Originally Posted by FlamesAddiction

Their power is rooted in the fact that they are always more than willing to do whatever nasty things they need to in order to gain power (gulags, dictatorships, genocide, invading neighbours to create a "buffer") and they have a cultural martyrdom complex. Their people would rather starve than be anything but a global power.

Not that the U.S. is innocent in how they project or seize power, but compared to Russia, they are saints.

Gulags - The US has the largest prison population in the world
Dictatorships - Slavery extending into the 1960s.
Invading Neighbours - Invading Neighbours
Cultural Martyrdom - American Exceptionalism

I mean, crazy pills here.

Look, I'm not trying to defend the soviet union/russia here, but you basically have to be an idiot to think that the US is the most powerful nation in the world and spent 40 years dedicated to combating the machinations of a '2nd rate power'.

[FlamesAddiction]

Originally Posted by Flash Walken

Gulags - The US has the largest prison population in the world
Dictatorships - Slavery extending into the 1960s.
Invading Neighbours - Invading Neighbours
Cultural Martyrdom - American Exceptionalism

I mean, crazy pills here.

Look, I'm not trying to defend the soviet union/russia here, but you basically have to be an idiot to think that the US is the most powerful nation in the world and spent 40 years dedicated to combating the machinations of a '2nd rate power'.

I'm not saying they were a 2nd rate power, but only that they achieve their power by basically being the world biggest #######s. Again, I am not saying that the U.S. is innocent or altruistic in how they achieved their status as a global power, but they have nothing on Russia when it comes to treachery and all around sleazy behavior.

[Locke]

Writing off the Russians as 'half-assed lunatics' is dangerous.

[undercoverbrother]

Originally Posted by Flash Walken

LoL

Stop the Nazi's, first man made object to leave earth's gravity. First ICBM. First man made object to land on the moon. First human in space. First man made object to impact another planet. First woman in space. First permanently manned space station.

"2nd rate power"

Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean someone isn't out to dismiss ya.

My experience from seeing Warsaw Pact Equipment first hand in the 90's, is that Nato would have kicked their ass. The JNA was a "well equiped" military.......by Nato standards it was garbage. Was there some equipment that wasn't yeah, but by and large at the time Nato would have won a conventional war. I have no doubt about that.

[Rerun]

Originally Posted by Locke

Writing off the Russians as 'half-assed lunatics' is dangerous.

I don't think anybody's writing them off... they're f'ing dangerous. The have nukes up the wazoo.

But that's the only thing they are first rate in.

Economy - 2nd rate.
Std of living - 2nd rate
Military equipment - 2nd rate
Democracy - 2nd rate
Freedom of the press - 2nd rate

Hockey league - 2nd rate (nuff said)

[Itse]

Originally Posted by Rerun

I don't think anybody's writing them off... they're f'ing dangerous. The have nukes up the wazoo.

But that's the only thing they are first rate in.

Economy - 2nd rate.
Std of living - 2nd rate
Military equipment - 2nd rate
Democracy - 2nd rate
Freedom of the press - 2nd rate

You could actually say that's very generous.

Freedom of press, below most of Africa, all of Eastern Europe (except Belarus, which is openly a dictatorship).

Democracy, doesn't really have any. Ranked with the authoritarian regimes like China.

Std of Living, depends on what measure you use and how many rates you have, but in Quality of life index they're below places like Armenia, Colombia, all of Eastern Europe, even places like Belarus.

Economy, well they have all that oil and gas so yeah.

Military... That's pretty much the only thing they have going.

[nik-]

Originally Posted by Itse

You could actually say that's very generous.

Agreed. There are several Quality of Life indicators that put Russia on the level of a developing nation.

[jammies]

#1 in gangsters. You have to give them that.

I read this last month and it's an excellent view into Russia. Highly recommended.

http://www.amazon.ca/Nothing-Is-True.../dp/1610394550