Thread: Stephen Cohen. Distorting Russia. How the American media misrepresent Putin...

Originally Posted by Lampada

You have to stop being judgmental here because you sound offensive and it's forbidden on this forum. Consider it as a warning.

I am asking how they reach their opinion. It seems irrational to me.

Edit: no problem. It won't matter anyway - there are no other opinions on here.

So I will sum up 14Russians points in a non-offensive way...
I gave some answers as I understand them. Please correct me if I am wrong!

"Why does the referendum have to take place so soon? "
The longer they wait, the longer other forces have to plan their response in case of a Yes vote. The presidential election is in May, they need to do it long before that. Plus, things tend to happen pretty fast in this part of the world, don't they? It's just a general trend. It's also more democratic, since you don't leave too much time for an orchestrated PR campaign and expensivew manipulation of the public opinion. Compare with the Scotland referendum where everybody knows what the outcome will be, and what will happen if opinion swings in the time leading up to the referendum.

"Are alternative viewpoints currently being censored in Crimea? Why did Ukrainian TV get banned and Russian channels appeared in their place? "
I think this is a bit suspicious. This will be used to discredit the referendum. Seems like a Soviet mindset. I am sure they have an explanation, but not too sure the answer would cut the muster. However, the people in Crimea have the internet and radio so they can still access alternative viewpoints. I believe it's a mistake by the Crimean parliament to do this though.

"Isn't it extremely simplified and quite brutal agitation to claim that staying with Ukraine equals Nazism? "
I too think that banner is ridiculous and this line of reasoning overly simplistic and possibly false. However it seems that this is considered fair game by people in that part of the world. Who knows what the other side will say! Maybe that's what you need to do, to get your message across in this culture. It might be what people are expecting. But I think it's a bit hard to stomach too.

"The 'far Right' in Ukraine has been bought by the American and Israeli Zionists. They were probably given money and promises..."
No, they have a tradition of radical nationalism there, as a reaction against Communism and Russia. And actual Nazism during the war. Also, bear in mind that people in Eastern Europe have not been through the same Politically Correct brainwashing as you and I for instance. So radical nationalism is not quite as shocking to the average person there, as it is to us. It's visible in places like Hungary, East Germany and Poland, not just Ukraine. Something tells me you don't care much for the PC agenda yourself.... Why would Zionists care about Ukraine? Bankers, Corporations and NATO/USA, yes. But Zionists? Seriously? As for Russia - sure. Ukraine is their little defense buffer against Europe and it's too bad for the Ukrainians that this is the case. Russia lost almost all its other buffers, so of course they care about one of the few ones remaining... Personally I still think Moscow cares a lot more about Ukraine and its population than Brussels does. Just for starters, half of Russia seems to have family there, or go there on holiday. Greece shows us that the EU is quite happy to let even long-standing members really suffer. So why would they care about UA any more?

"I would rather not be controlled but be poor and in charge of my own independence than sell out. How come the Ukrainians don't feel this way? "
How poor have you actually been in your life? I think people in Ukraine know more about poverty and its effects than you do.

Originally Posted by Hanna

So I will sum up 14Russians points in a non-offensive way...
I gave some answers as I understand them. Please correct me if I am wrong!

You're always wrong. Why do you reply to my posts. I think you should mind your own business or reply to the other posts like you do showing your ignorance and lack of knowledge.

Originally Posted by 14Russian

You're always wrong. Why do you reply to my posts. I think you should mind your own business or reply to the other posts like you do showing your ignorance and lack of knowledge.

You are one hopeless meany.

Originally Posted by 14Russian

You're always wrong. Why do you reply to my posts. I think you should mind your own business or reply to the other posts like you do showing your ignorance and lack of knowledge.

Please can you point out exactly what was ignorant or showed a lack of knowledge in what I wrote?

It is not at all impossible that I got something wrong - that's why I started with "correct me if I am wrong". I thought that some of your points were interesting and valid, that's why I wrote about it.

If you do not give an example, I will assume that your comment was simply intended as a personal insult.