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From the Council of Weasels

3 comments on From the Council of Weasels

From the Council of Weasels
: There are fun PR two-steps coming out of the Council of Weasels meeting in Russia. TASS, the official news agency, quotes Putin:

Putin said “We have never said we support Saddam Hussein’s regime, we have always said his regime does not correspond to human rights.”

But one cannot resolve the problem by means of war, otherwise should wars be waged against 80 percent of countries who fail to conform to western standards? Putin said.

“Only nations themselves should determine their fate,” the president said.

OK, Puty-put. So you’d be happy if Yugoslavia were still bombing and cleansing at your doorstep. And I get it: Chechnya shouldn’t determine its fate because it’s not a nation. Or is it?

: A fuller quote and different translation from another story:

“We must remember that up to 80 per cent of the world’s nations do not meet European democratic standards but only the people of these nations can determine their future. The principle of sovereignty should remain unshakable,” Mr. Putin said.

“And another question is: are those nations ready for the introduction of democracy?”

See my note below on anti-war side’s condescension to the Iraqi people.

Not ready for democracy?

When are humans not ready for democracy? When are they ready, instead, for totalitarian rule?

I guess Russia wasn’t ready for democracy all those years and that’s why it had Joe Stalin, eh?

And when the Berlin Wall fell, was Russia ready for democracy then … or did the people demand it?

Now that Baghdad has fallen, will the other Arab nations be ready for democracy…or will the people simply demand it?

: Schroeder also made reference to needed reforms at the U.N. — including reforms of the security council.

I think the accepted definition of Security Council reform is kicking France off, no?

3 responses to “From the Council of Weasels”

  1. Sean Kirby Avatar
    Sean Kirby

    That’s some principal Vlad – nations can determine their own future, but some aren’t ready for democracy. They’ll just permit themselves to be fucked by despots until they get ready to vote, and when they do, the west will make sure to have nothing to do with the process. That way, if democractic revolutions fail, and the people are plunged back into totalitarian control, it’ll be because deep down, thats what they really wanted.

  2. enloop Avatar
    enloop

    >> “Only nations themselves should determine their fate…”
    Putin should know better than most the fallacy of that statement. A functioning and viable totalitarian state cannot be overthrown by internal rebellion. (Remember that the USSR didn’t succumb to revolt, it collapsed after years of untreated internal decay.)
    Those who don’t believe the U.S. should act to eliminate the threat posed to all democracies by totalitarian regimes need to propose a better way to get rid of those thugs.

  3. Andrew | BYTE BACK Avatar
    Andrew | BYTE BACK

    You mean like those non-democratic hotbeads of evil Qatar and Singapore? Just for example.
    When will people understand non-Democratic doesn’t equal communism?
    Jeff, Mr. Jarvis. You can’t blame one side over others. You must – if you are to be credible – actually listen to the people in the crowds, not just the organizers or the people you perceive to be against war.
    And isn’t Putin, BTW, the guy George Bush Junior said, to wildly paraphrase, I can see into his soul. He’s a good man.