I listened to a YouTube Vlogger from Russia. I have never listened to him before, and my finger was hovering over the delete button because I could see his video lasted for 1:13 hours, and I feel that if you can’t tell me this very important message that you think I need to hear, in 20 minutes or less, it is not worth listening to.
He was sitting on his sofa, pouring himself a cup of tea and getting comfortable, while I was getting uncomfortable, because it looked like he was wasting my time. Well, actually, he was wasting my time, but I gave him the benefit of the doubt, because the caption he chose was, “Anger Starts Growing.” That is, anger is starting to grow in the minds of the average Russian.
He details the lead-up to the invasion of Ukraine, and all the way through the address you can see him struggling to stay within the law regarding what he can legally say and what might land him in court (read, ‘jail’). And he says the first bell went off in his head when several airports were closed around the country. Immediately he knew this was far out of the ordinary. They were told airport closures would last only 2 weeks. But subsequently they were extended further and further into the future.
Then Russians learned from their leadership that a “Special Military Operation” had begun to de-Nazify and de-militarise Ukraine. All Russians, he suggests, got a real shock that this had happened, they knew nothing about such plans (I watched a YouTuber questioning Russians in the early part of the war, and many of them would not believe their military had invaded Ukraine). But Russians assumed that the military had a clear plan in place. They were told each evening that things were going exactly to plan and that soon things would be back to normal. But as the days turned into weeks, and they learned the military had suffered 498 deaths so far (in reality it was in the thousands by then), they soon understood that something was not going to plan.
Then they were told the military around Kyiv would be pulling back to Russia, and many Russians started to feel that their questions about this special operation to de-Nazify Ukraine had not been satisfied at all and that things were going anything but ‘to plan’. Where was the evidence of de-Nazification and de-militarisation, especially if they were retreating from the capital of this Nazi state, Kyiv?
This Russian Vlogger repeatedly asks his listeners not to give up on Russians just yet, and then he bows his head into his hand, in some sort of disgust, or shame, and says, “Things are not good. (A longish pause) It looks like we just took Shotgun and shot ourselves in both feet and both ankles, and we just laying on the ground, screaming and bleeding. But we did it to ourselves, with no apparent reason! And those bullets, they ricocheted, and they shot our neighbours.”
Constantine bows his head again and says, “That’s what the situation is like. So, we hurt our neighbours and we hurt ourselves, for what?”
By “our neighbours” he doesn’t mean fellow Russians, he means Ukraine and Europe.
He is suggesting that Russians are just starting to question the propaganda bombardment they are being subjected to, and that the initial unquestioning support for the President and leadership is starting to change. Many people who were very vocal in support of the party spin-doctors, have now fallen silent, and are starting to question the direction they are being taken in.
I am sure there are many people in Russia who are not happy with the status quo, and I am sure there will be many in future who will join them. And of course, the followers of Alexei Navalny have always been against the status quo. But unfortunately, now things have moved too far against Russia, and the sad fact is the whole country will have to wear the blame for this, and suffer the consequences for a long, long time. There is no other option. There cannot be any back-down now, or for a long time after the war finishes, even assuming Ukraine ‘wins’ in some sense. The destruction and senseless killing cannot be wound back, and the price must be paid.
The question must be asked, why does Russia repeatedly shoot herself in the foot? I have my reasons, but I will not air them here. It is another (spiritual) story.
Here is the link to Constantine’s YouTube Vlog (he states his case in the first 33 minutes): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ypjOUpeOOAk
Cover photo: Copyright 2022 The Associated Press
Comentários