What countries do Russians want to conquer?

[Halbhh]

 

[friend of]

All of them! In Soviet Russia, Russia conquers you!

 

[durangodawood]

I think Putin relishes a third of Ukraine as actual Russia.
The rest as a vassal state.
And the Baltics and all of Eastern Europe as vassal states.
Probably the central Asian states too.
Basically a restoration of the Soviet sphere.

Thats the wish list anyway, I think.

 

[Halbhh]

There are several interesting videos of those street interviews like that one. Here's another:

 

[Halbhh]

 

[Chesterton]

That one girl:

Which country would you like to conquer?
Monaco.
Why?
Because it's rich and small.

There's a practical young lady.

 

[Nithavela]

I don't like those street interview collections. Question enough people and you can get 10 who say anything you want. String those clips together and you give people the impression that this is a majority opinion.

 

[Halbhh]

I don't like those street interview collections. Question enough people and you can get 10 who say anything you want. String those clips together and you give people the impression that this is a majority opinion.

Yeah, and we have no idea also, since polls now are untrustable. Since the new laws recently passed make it illegal to even criticize the war, or even to call it a war, so that Russians know it's not safe to answer honestly to the state endorsed (controlled) polling organization.

So a % number for approval is a total unknown.

But, it's still interesting for an entirely different reason.

I like seeing some real Moscovites. And hearing them. That's why it's great.

 

[Gregory Thompson]

What countries do Russians want to conquer?
[/MEDIA]

How many do you got?

 

[Chesterton]

I don't like those street interview collections. Question enough people and you can get 10 who say anything you want. String those clips together and you give people the impression that this is a majority opinion.

Street interviews are the only possible snippet of truth you will ever get from media for the rest of your life.

 

[Nithavela]

Street interviews are the only possible snippet of truth you will ever get from media for the rest of your life.

Why do you think that such an easily manipulable format would contain truth while they clamp down on it everywhere alse?

 

[Chesterton]

Why do you think that such an easily manipulable format would contain truth while they clamp down on it everywhere alse?

It may or may not contain truth, which is why I said it's "possible" for some truth there. But it's not possible to get it from professional talking heads.

 

[Nithavela]

It may or may not contain truth, which is why I said it's "possible" for some truth there. But it's not possible to get it from professional talking heads.

 

[Halbhh]

More on how Russian polling is skewed and unreal

Putin Tightens Grip on Russian dissent behind new Iron Curtain

I don't like those street interview collections. Question enough people and you can get 10 who say anything you want. String those clips together and you give people the impression that this is a majority opinion.

 

[Chesterton]

No, you're wrong.

 

[jayem]

That one girl:

Which country would you like to conquer?
Monaco.
Why?
Because it's rich and small.

There's a practical young lady.

Not to go off-topic. But Monaco is populated by the wealthy because there's no personal income or capital gains tax. (Though there is 19+% VAT on purchased goods.) However, if the Grimaldi family--who've ruled the principality since the 14th century--should fall, then Monaco becomes part of France. And all the residents will be subject to French income taxes.

 

[Halbhh]

What it's like to be a young Russian (university student or graduate) who isn't in Moscow or St. Petersburg? (the rich places that in some degree take some wealth from the rest of the country)

I think you can get some flavor in this video, even though it's just 1 person, and she is tired while making the video, but her being tired only adds to the honesty of it also. (she is in a machine junk yard just because it is peaceful and interesting to her, and that's not part of the point at all, but I can identify with that common sense liking of old equipment, as I also enjoy such places)

I suggest a good section is starting at 22 minutes, and I'll try to make the video start about there, but you can slide the time slider to any point. Also I'll point out another interesting section just below the video.

Also, how appearances like Putin's big rally, and even 'independent' polls, can be manufactured in Russia is at 13:15 time mark.

I don't like those street interview collections. Question enough people and you can get 10 who say anything you want. String those clips together and you give people the impression that this is a majority opinion.

 

[Bob Crowley]

I think at the back of Vladimir Putin's mind is a fear of a disintegrating Russia.

At its greatest extent, the Russian empire under the Tsars occupied 14 million square miles including the following territory.

The Russian Empire (1721-1917) - VoegelinView

At the height of its expansion, the Russian Empire stretched across the northern portions of Europe and Asia and comprised nearly one-sixth of the earth’s landmass; it occupied modern Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova, Finland, the Caucasus (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia), Central Asia (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan), the Baltic Republics (Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia), and significant parts of Poland and Turkey.

Under the Soviet Union following World War II, it also controlled East Germany, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Romania, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria and Albania. Initially it included Yugoslavia, but Tito fell out with the Soviets. It had territory and influence in Asia and parts of the third world. Russian still controls islands disputed by the Japanese.

They have thousands of nuclear weapons all over the place. If Russia did disintegrate, the West had better hope we don't end up with a nuclear Yugoslavia, or terrorists getting their hands on the weapons if the Kremlin loses control.

I think it's quite possible that if Putin is perceived as losing the Ukraine War, or the price is too high, there will be places where other territories might try to remove themselves from Russian control. It would be a fraught situation.

 

[Halbhh]

I think at the back of Vladimir Putin's mind is a fear of a disintegrating Russia.

At its greatest extent, the Russian empire under the Tsars occupied 14 million square miles including the following territory.

The Russian Empire (1721-1917) - VoegelinView



Under the Soviet Union following World War II, it also controlled East Germany, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Romania, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria and Albania. Initially it included Yugoslavia, but Tito fell out with the Soviets. It had territory and influence in Asia and parts of the third world. Russian still controls islands disputed by the Japanese.

They have thousands of nuclear weapons all over the place. If Russia did disintegrate, the West had better hope we don't end up with a nuclear Yugoslavia, or terrorists getting their hands on the weapons if the Kremlin loses control.

I think it's quite possible that if Putin is perceived as losing the Ukraine War, or the price is too high, there will be places where other territories might try to remove themselves from Russian control. It would be a fraught situation.

I agree with all of this, which we've heard in analysis also by more than a few thinkers on Russia. But...also, Russia could just declare victory, and withdraw to be previous lines of control in the Donbass, and claim to the population they had accomplished X, Y, and Z, as normal (meaning even though they did not), and enough people would believe that, etc., and Putin might even be able to survive it. While in contrast, he seems bent on gambling to get more, and that opens up that he could outright lose the war in a more total way, with retreat everywhere, and get pushed out of the Donbas (yeah, I know I'm not saying the conventional wisdom on this one!), and then he'd not even have any propaganda possibility that would work to obscure or hide that, since it would be clearly and unarguably a total defeat that even those wishing to believe in a grand Russia could not avoid seeing.

 

[Halbhh]

I think at the back of Vladimir Putin's mind is a fear of a disintegrating Russia.

At its greatest extent, the Russian empire under the Tsars occupied 14 million square miles including the following territory.

The Russian Empire (1721-1917) - VoegelinView



Under the Soviet Union following World War II, it also controlled East Germany, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Romania, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria and Albania. Initially it included Yugoslavia, but Tito fell out with the Soviets. It had territory and influence in Asia and parts of the third world. Russian still controls islands disputed by the Japanese.

They have thousands of nuclear weapons all over the place. If Russia did disintegrate, the West had better hope we don't end up with a nuclear Yugoslavia, or terrorists getting their hands on the weapons if the Kremlin loses control.

I think it's quite possible that if Putin is perceived as losing the Ukraine War, or the price is too high, there will be places where other territories might try to remove themselves from Russian control. It would be a fraught situation.

Also, an interesting analysis yesterday pointed out that it's in the interest of Russian military leaders to drag out this war, that it's best for their personal situation/status/security if the war continues indefinitely (a war end would be dangerous to them personally).