Russians consider whether to retake Alaska

[Halbhh]

A summary of main stuff in the video:

A set of direct, random, brief on-street interviews of residents of Moscow where the interviewer asks in various ways if these random city residents think Russia should have Alaska back or take it back. 1420 is a YouTube channel with very many on-street interview questions to random passersby about all sorts of questions, often with some humor.

One of the main points many make in the video is that Russia already has a lot of rich land full of natural resources, and needs to attend to developing its own land, and not trying to take land from other nations, such as Alaska or Ukraine! The other key point a few people make is that any land wishing to join Russia should only join by voluntary choice, and not by force/war.

The main value in the video I think is how it shows some real attitudes that are common among city residents.

 

[Occams Barber]

I wonder if anyone has asked Putin the same question.

OB

 

[Pavel Mosko]

I heard about this before. Yeah they got their money already!

Fact is they actually have trouble maintaining all the land they already got, much of it is not actually profitable it only is good for all the resources that they will eventually mine or drill from it. I can't imagine adding more that is separated by Ocean. At least they can use cost affective rail roads to maintain the giant Eurasian territory of desolate places like Siberia and Mongolia. But as it is they have to subsidize the living of millions of people living out in the boondocks.

 

[Landon Caeli]

I wonder if these people have been arrested after the filming of this video.

 

[jacks]

It doesn't sound like they would take Alaska, even if we gave it to them as a gift.

 

[Halbhh]

I heard about this before. Yeah they got their money already!

Fact is they actually have trouble maintaining all the land they already got, much of it is not actually profitable it only is good for all the resources that they will eventually mine or drill from it. I can't imagine adding more that is separated by Ocean. At least they can use cost affective rail roads to maintain the giant Eurasian territory of desolate places like Siberia and Mongolia. But as it is they have to subsidize the living of millions of people living out in the boondocks.

It's interesting to consider whether there is really a net subsidy to the regions. St. Petersburg and Moscow are so much richer, in part because wealth from natural resources from those rural regions flows to them. Sorta flows from the provinces, to those 2 cities, in effect. So, if officially the government gives subsidy to the provinces, it's sorta like giving back part of what was taken, in effect. I'm using the Georgist view that ultimately we should see natural resources as belonging to all the people of a nation/region, essentially, even while some companies manage and extract those resources, the people rightfully deserve 'rent' (royalties), simply by being people/nation that own that land in an ultimate national community sense.

But it's such a good point that Russia is very rich in natural resources, already. It does not need to rob Ukraine to be wealthy in natural resources. It needs to develop what it already has. I was encouraged to see people in the video saying that.

 

[Red Gold]

But it's such a good point that Russia is very rich in natural resources, already. It does not need to rob Ukraine to be wealthy in natural resources. It needs to develop what it already has. I was encouraged to see people in the video saying that.

Good!