Just more semantics, meant to impact Russia negatively. As poster 2 said, even Western sheeple won’t be moved by that phrase.

Posted by: ben | Aug 22 2014 14:18 utc | 3

Even the WSJ admits the Ukrainian forces are taking serious losses….
http://online.wsj.com/articles/ukraine-suffers-heavy-losses-in-counterattack-by-pro-russia-rebels-1408626401?ru=yahoo?mod=yahoo_itp

Posted by: dh | Aug 22 2014 14:55 utc | 5

Well, it took this forced humanitairian invasion with water and baby food for the UN to finally react and also promise humanitarian help in the Ukrain UNO erklärt sich bereit zu humanitärer Unterstützung für Ukraine | Politik | RIA Novosti Though it looks more like money and in cooperation with Kiev. So they still assume that Kiev will win.
Sorry that the links are again in German – Ria does not post the same stories in all version or at least not at the same time.

Posted by: Fran | Aug 22 2014 15:04 utc | 7

ralphieboy – I don’t really care about the motivation for the help – the people needed help. The western nations and the UN knew about this situation for a long time. Russia has been asking the UN for month for help and has been lectured by Powers as hypocrite and laughed at. So the west missed a chance to show its humanitarian side – well, all I can say for Putin, thanks for sending help, what ever his motivations.
I don’t particularely like Putin, but with this Ukrainian crisis to me it has been shown that the politicians in the West are not any better and have been playing a shameful role.

Posted by: Fran | Aug 22 2014 15:25 utc | 9

And the US is again so very supportive to give help to the people in the East- not!
By Blocking UN Resolution, US Shows That It Seeks Ukrainian Conflict Escalation – Moscow | Politics | RIA Novosti

MOSCOW, August 22 (RIA Novosti) – By blocking the UN Security Council statement on the ceasefire in Ukraine, Washington has demonstrated that it wants to see further escalation of the Ukrainian conflict, the Russian Foreign Ministry said Friday.

“If the US opposes an absolutely non-confrontational, reconciliatory text, there can be no doubts that Washington intends to have the armed confrontation in Ukraine continued. It could be seen only as an attempt to ‘undermine’ the humanitarian mission,” the ministry said in a statement.

This statement was about a cease fire during the humanitarian help to the East.
Oh, and not far behind is MS Asthon FM of the EU supporting Kiev that this humanitarian convoi was an “invasion”. What do these people smoke?

Posted by: Fran | Aug 22 2014 15:58 utc | 11

@10 fran.. thanks for that. i missed it while i was typing and it confirms my viewpoint in @11..

Posted by: james | Aug 22 2014 16:05 utc | 13

Putin takes Charge:
http://en.ria.ru/world/20140822/192257536/Putin-to-Merkel-Russia-Not-to-Allow-Further-Delay-in-Aid.html
Russian President Vladimir Putin said in a phone call with German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Friday that Russia had to act decisively in the situation with the aid convoy in order to prevent further delays in the delivery of humanitarian cargo to the crisis-hit eastern Ukraine.
“Putin stressed that considering Kiev’s blatant attempts to hinder the delivery of Russian humanitarian aid to Ukrainian regions caught in humanitarian crisis the Russian leadership has decided to move the truck convoy [across the Ukrainian border],” the Kremlin press service said.
“Further delays would be inadmissible,” the statement said quoting the Russian president….
Earlier in the day, at least 60 trucks from the Russian convoy carrying humanitarian aid to violence-torn Luhansk and Donetsk regions crossed the border with Ukraine allegedly without clearance by Ukrainian customs officials and without escort provided by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).”
This is classic Putin. Just when people are criticizing him for doing nothing, he puts his foot down and says “This is what we’re doing, and if you don’t like it, TOUGH”.
This is a victory for Russia and a big slapdown for Obama.

Posted by: plantman | Aug 22 2014 16:14 utc | 15

@13 Good point. Even the BBC is calling it humanitarian aid. They usually use inverted commas when they want to cast aspersions.

Posted by: dh | Aug 22 2014 16:29 utc | 17

If the pentagon is seeing all this russian equipment and troops crossing the boarder where are the pictures? Where is the proof?

Posted by: really | Aug 22 2014 16:38 utc | 19

These oligarch tools who hold power in Ukraine must think everyone is as stupid as they are.
I’ve read on more than one occasion a saying that goes, “once Ukrainians get smart, they become Russians.”
It appears the Western-backed tools eager to sell out and kill their own countrymen haven’t gotten that far yet.
It will be far better in the long run when the Nazi thugs start getting mysteriously “liquidated.”

Posted by: Prey4 Justice | Aug 22 2014 17:01 utc | 21

@21.. obviously no proof is needed. it wasn’t with any of the previous stories about pretty well everything else.. why would this be any different?
gas attack from the syrian gov’t?
saddam’s wmds?
on and on.. thanks nyt, wapo and wsj for being such an easy read!

Posted by: james | Aug 22 2014 17:36 utc | 23

Counterpunch’s Mike Whitney publishes the interview with Sergei Glaziev:
http://www.counterpunch.org/2014/08/22/understanding-ukraine-in-15-minutes/
Joyce Nelson on Monsanto and Ukraine:
http://www.counterpunch.org/2014/08/22/70838/
Jack Rasmus on the economic consequences of Mr Obama’s sanctions:
http://www.counterpunch.org/2014/08/22/70838/
plus the inimitable Israel Shamir:
http://www.counterpunch.org/2014/08/22/kill-putin/
The thug oligarch junta is becoming an embarrassment even to the thick skinned BBC and their US mentors in imperial propaganda for dummies.
“Smuggling humanitarian aid in” indeed.
Sadly though the motivation seems very obvious- it is the least that the Russian government could do. And they did it.

Posted by: bevin | Aug 22 2014 18:05 utc | 25

Fran @8 “I don’t particularely like Putin, but with this Ukrainian crisis to me it has been shown that the politicians in the West are not any better and have been playing a shameful role.”
Can you elaborate on your dislike for Putin….This is a statement I hear too often from my “ill informed”
friends here in the States. When I ask for specifics, I always get a dumb look in return….
America is know for its quick humanitarian responses. But as evidenced in the Ukraine, Syria and Gaza, head is turned in the other direction…..

Posted by: georgeg | Aug 22 2014 18:30 utc | 27

george g, I’ll tell you what I don’t like about Putin – he’s a neoliberal “reformer”, although not as severe as the neoliberal reformers who have taken over the EU and EZ. That said, he stands head and shoulders above any Western leader I can think of.

Posted by: okie farmer | Aug 22 2014 18:35 utc | 29

Another classic story on National Public Radio Thursday morning. Reporter Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson is embedded with Ukrainian troops trying to reach a hospital where survivors of this week’s attack on a refuge convoy are recovering. The idea is to get a someone to say exactly whose Grads destroyed the convoy. Nelson must beleive her own upbeat stories on the fighting and doesn’t fully grasp just how dangerous it is to be driving around the Donbass with a Ukrainian military convoy. The story spirals downward and ends with a thud but there are classic scenes along the way.
As Ukraine Presses Military Offensive, The Facts Are Fuzzy
NELSON (01:20): We hit our first snag just after the besieged city of Luhansk appeared in the distance. Our military escort explains that unexpected fighting up ahead requires us to change course. The shelling in the distance punctuated those concerns, and we watched a couple of army trucks drive off in that direction. Later, we were told the rebels knew our media convoy was here and planned to attack us.
UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: (Foreign language spoken).
NELSON: This Ukrainian journalist asks how do you know? The media escort’s answer is vague – something about intercepted radio communications. We moved to a nearby hilltop while the escort leaders talks with his bosses to figure out what to do next. Ukrainian troops are camped here and give us a rare glimpse into the poor conditions Ukrainian troops operate under. One soldier is Vitaliy Yakymenko.
VITALIY YAKYMENKO: (Foreign language spoken).
NELSON: He complains poor planning and a shortage of supplies, including ammunition, are costing soldiers their lives. He claims the enemy has better arms and equipment, which are widely believed to come from Russia even though the Kremlin denies it.
YAKYMENKO: (Foreign language spoken).
NELSON: Contrary to Kiev’s claims that the rebels are nearing defeat, Yakymenko believes that a Ukrainian victory is a long way off. He says, we will have conflicts here again and again until the Ukrainian government closes the border with Russia. Fellow soldier Grygoriy Pisarenko says supply shortages aren’t the only impediment.
GRYGORIY PISARENKO: (Foreign language spoken).
NELSON: He says Ukrainian troops have to be very cautious when they advance to minimize civilian deaths and damage to infrastructure. Pisarenko explains, we are in our own country. And these are our people. So we have to take care even if the Russians don’t. As to the deadly attack on the refugee convoy, I still can’t tell you what happened for sure as the Ukrainian military decided things were too dangerous and we needed to leave before meeting the refugees. Officials offered us a witness to convoy attack instead. But we never met him either.

Posted by: Anon | Aug 22 2014 18:44 utc | 31

Can you elaborate on your dislike for Putin….This is a statement I hear too often from my “ill informed”
friends here in the States. When I ask for specifics, I always get a dumb look in return….
Now that’s a laugh! I nearly fell out of my chair. Check my blog out for what’s not to like about Putin. It’s quite a laundry list.

Posted by: Cold N. Holefield | Aug 22 2014 18:53 utc | 33

@25 I was just about to post the link. Kagarlisky has been cited on here before. He was the one I quoted as saying that sanctions would be very good for Russia as they would force the government to re-invest in the country and to control the chronic outflow of wealth and capital.
This is a very good article (in other words kt confirms my prejudices.)
@27 james. Yes I saw it at The Saker’s Vineyard. I was unaware that it had already been posted here. No harm done but I find it very irritating when others do it so I apologise for doing it myself. The truth is that, given a summer so short, I can spend little time following the discussions here at the moment- not an unalloyed curse but a problem nevertheless.

Posted by: bevin | Aug 22 2014 19:01 utc | 35

Fran @31. I like your sincerity. I prefer his “Macho” stance whatever that means to the macho stance taken by our current clueless leader. Human Rights is such a broad term, not really practiced by anyone in the Western world. And also twisted by us to demonized those we don’t care for.

Posted by: georgeg | Aug 22 2014 19:04 utc | 37

thanks fran @31. ditto georgeg’s comment at 36.
some might find the sakers comments on today’s development of the aid from russia worth reading.

Posted by: james | Aug 22 2014 20:42 utc | 39

one thing’s for certain – if the Kiev regime finally poke Russia into invading, they lose half the country within days

Posted by: robbo | Aug 22 2014 20:47 utc | 41

ralphieboy@39…you are wrong on all counts. Moscow has a gay community as well as gay bars which probably exceeds San Francisco. Muslim Mosques as well as Jewish Synagogues span the whole federation. Political dissidents are frowned upon the by general public especially when their sponsors (who us??) are obvious.
They have laws which are right wing poster boys would love introducing to our country. Morality and common sense discipline may have a place here. Putin is not the law giver!!!

Posted by: georgeg | Aug 22 2014 21:15 utc | 43

@ralphieboy #39:

If you are a political dissident, you can say anything you want about him – in private.

Where on earth do you get that idea? From Western propaganda, obviously.
There are plenty of anti-Russian government, pro-Western, “liberal” Web sites in Russia (not that I read them). The only time something that can be considered to be political suppression occurs in Russia today is if an anti-government political figure gets a following and has the possibility of getting into a position of power. But such cases can be counted on the fingers of one hand.
Unlike China, Russia does not block Web sites. And the government is actually pretty lax in the exertion of political control that it has decided to engage in. For example, a regulation or law (can’t remember which) was recently instituted requiring organizations which get foreign funding to register as “foreign agents”. But organizations defy this requirement, and so far, the government has done nothing in response. An example is the Levada Center, the main non-governmental Russian opinion polling organization.
There is also a new requirement that popular blogs must register with the government. But Colonel Cassad has posted on his blog that he will not register.

Posted by: Demian | Aug 22 2014 21:31 utc | 45

Read the headline on the link:
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/23/world/europe/russia-moves-artillery-units-into-ukraine-nato-says.html?action=click&contentCollection=Opinion&region=Footer&module=TopNews&pgtype=Blogs
Russia Moves Artillery Units Into Ukraine, NATO Says
By MICHAEL R. GORDON FYI, [Gordon was/is THE NY Times disinformation specialist of the Iraq Invasion. He was one of the main purveyors of the story that Saddam Hussein would have a nuclear weapon in a matter of months.]
Now read this line:
“Since mid-August NATO has received multiple reports of the direct involvement of Russian forces, “including Russian airborne, air defense and special operations forces in Eastern Ukraine,” said Oana Lungescu, a spokeswoman for NATO.”
I’m sure they’ve received reports of all sorts of things, but I pay a lot of taxes for spy satellites…so why are they not claiming to have verified the reports with aerial reconnaissance?
“NATO’s secretary general, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, criticized the Russian moves in a statement issued in Brussels on Friday. “I condemn the entry of a Russian so-called humanitarian convoy into Ukrainian territory without the consent of the Ukrainian authorities and without any involvement of the International Committee of the Red Cross,Mr. Rasmussen’s statement said.”
Clever No? Conflating unsubstantiated [but easily verifiable “reports”] and an unrelated item on humanitarian aide to give the perception of verification of his “source”
From Wiki:
“During the first phase of the Iraq war, he was the only newspaper reporter embedded with the allied land command under General Tommy Franks, a position that “granted him unique access to cover the invasion strategy and its enactment””
“he was the first to report Saddam Hussein’s alleged nuclear weapons program in August 2002 with the article “U.S. Says Hussein Intensifies Quest for A-Bomb Parts.”
As an author, he [wrote] The Generals’ War: The Inside Story of the Conflict in the Gulf, which covers the 1991 Gulf War,[citation needed] and Cobra II, which covers the Iraq War begun 2003.[4]
The General’s War won high praise from …Defense Secretary Dick Cheney describing it as “a fascinating account of the war” that he would “recommend”…

Posted by: S Brennan | Aug 22 2014 21:53 utc | 47

The homo,femen,and ZioNazis of intolerance hate Putin.
The Bolshoi Ballet has seen its share of stars of a different persuasion,I would imagine,and they seem to revere those stars,so I think this alleged hatred of gays is hyperbole to smear Russia,and Putin.

Posted by: dahoit | Aug 22 2014 22:58 utc | 49

My old nemesis from 2002-3 still stinking up the joint, please pass this around…thanks;
File Under: Who Are the Creeps That Start Wars
Read the Breathless headline on the link: –
RUSSIA MOVES ARTILLERY UNITS INTO UKRAINE, NATO SAYS
– By MICHAEL R. GORDON FYI, – [Gordon was/is THE NY Times disinformation specialist of the Iraq Invasion. He was one of the main purveyors of the story that Saddam Hussein would have a nuclear weapon in a matter of months.]
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/23/world/europe/russia-moves-artillery-units-into-ukraine-nato-says.html?action=click&contentCollection=Opinion&region=Footer&module=TopNews&pgtype=Blogs
Now read this line:
“Since mid-August NATO has received multiple reports of the direct involvement of Russian forces, “including Russian airborne, air defense and special operations forces in Eastern Ukraine,” said Oana Lungescu, a spokeswoman for NATO.”
I’m sure they’ve received reports of all sorts of things, but I pay a lot of taxes for spy satellites…so why are they not claiming to have verified the reports with aerial reconnaissance?
“NATO’s secretary general, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, criticized the Russian moves in a statement issued in Brussels on Friday. “I condemn the entry of a Russian so-called humanitarian convoy into Ukrainian territory without the consent of the Ukrainian authorities and without any involvement of the International Committee of the Red Cross,Mr. Rasmussen’s statement said.”
Clever No? Conflating unsubstantiated [but easily verifiable “reports”] and an unrelated item on humanitarian aide to give the perception of verification of his “source”
From Wiki:
“During the first phase of the Iraq war, he was the only newspaper reporter embedded with the allied land command under General Tommy Franks, a position that “granted him unique access to cover the invasion strategy and its enactment””
“he was the first to report Saddam Hussein’s alleged nuclear weapons program in August 2002 with the article “U.S. Says Hussein Intensifies Quest for A-Bomb Parts.”
As an author, he [wrote] The Generals’ War: The Inside Story of the Conflict in the Gulf, which covers the 1991 Gulf War,[citation needed] and Cobra II, which covers the Iraq War begun 2003.[4]
The General’s War won high praise from …Defense Secretary Dick Cheney describing it as “a fascinating account of the war” that he would “recommend”.
18 & 21 agree with your posts

Posted by: S Brennan | Aug 23 2014 0:40 utc | 51

@47 malooga. thanks for the post and the link to read more of mcmurtry’s ideas..
here is one of many lines from the article that resonates.
“The US now leads the globe in an underlying civil war of the rich against the poor.”

Posted by: james | Aug 23 2014 0:53 utc | 53

And dont forget this classic Michael Gordon fraud from April, purporting to prove the Russian military was in E. Ukraine. The NYT later said the article wasnt what it said it was.
Michael Gordon is a propagandist. But if you want to see what unfettered propaganda is like check out The Interpreter’s Michael Weiss. Non-stop rumors that feeds anti-Russian bias, unevidenced assertions of fact, rank speculations, and every day he predicts that Russia will invade tomorrow.

Posted by: ess emm | Aug 23 2014 1:26 utc | 55

@17 “Merkel will use the visit to make clear that “Germany will never again sign a contract with another country in Europe to the detriment of a third,” said Michael Gahler, a member of European Parliament from Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union.”
Now what the hell is that supposed to mean? The free-trade-zone agreement that a cabal of EU countries was trying to push on Ukraine pre-war was exactly to the detriment of Central Europe. In fact, I wonder why the Central Europeans (Poland, Slovakia, Czech) are backing this stupid war when the EU aim was (is?) to turn Ukie into a modern-day sweatshop Indonesia, harvesting the resulting low-cost goods for import back to WesEur and cutting CenEur manufacutring out of the loop.
More and more, Germany is resembling a weak nation caught between NATO/USA and Russia, waiting for somehting to break so she will then know what to do. Germany has no spine.

Posted by: Thumper | Aug 23 2014 2:40 utc | 57

“I hate to say it, but I think that the major motivation behind Russia sending an aid convoy to Ukraine was not so much to relive any suffering there than it was to be able to point a finger at Ukraine for the inevitable delay at the border.
A win-win situation for Russia, a lose-lose situation for the civilians suffering in this tragedy.
Posted by: ralphieboy | Aug 22, 2014 11:11:11 AM | 7

What complete fucking dick you are, ralphieboy. Do you think the poor people with the aid are thinking of it in the same terms as you from your fucking computer chair, you piece of shit?

Posted by: guest77 | Aug 23 2014 4:40 utc | 59

Russian Spring
Donetsk. 08/21/2014-20:40
Summary from combatant Prokhorov:

Convoy is convoy, yet, the war continues.
The opponent is being methodically uprooted in area of Saur-Mogila with a simultaneous strike at opponent bases in area of Amvrosiyevka. As an example, “Grads” crashed a base of Ukrainians in village Kuteynikovo. Waiting for new pictures of burned military hardware.
Area of fire encirclement (encirclement by artillery fire) for Ukrainians has extended to Tel`manovo region of Donetsk Republic – positions of the territorial battalions near the regional center were struck from rocket launch systems. By radio intercepts, they really panic. Evident cases of deliberate leaving (towards Novoazovsk and Mariupol).
Battles continue in area of city Slavyanosebsk, like near village Smeloye (south of the city). Ukrainians routinely use artillery against residences.
Battles continue near Ilovaysk as well as near Donetsk – Mar`inka, Krasnogorovka. Also – in area of Zhdanovka and Verkhnetoretskoye (between occupied Avdeevka and Gorlovka). In addition, opponent’s rear was struck by artillery near village Berezovoye.
By the way, Ukranians pull in Ilovaysk all they can find. Even unit “Krim” (“Crimea”), which is reportedly to establish terrorist activities in Crimea.
The Ukrainian losses under Ilovaysk are really large – count tens, even hundreds. The exact number is unknown, for dense work of artillery. What is sure the hospital in Mariupol` does not catch up, and troops are sent further in Dnepr by helicopters.
Ukrainians blog: “First seven lorry tracks in a column of 34 vehicles are immobilized, some burn. Those from the convoy reaching Novosvetlovka turn away and flee back to the border”.
Wet dreams. The convoy is guarded by the detachment under command of “Kozir`” (“Trump”) (the one which chased paratroopers off Shakhtersk).
In Lugansk Republic, the combatants continue to uproot Ukrainian militaries from Novosvetlovka. Battles are in village Luganskaya, where the opponent brought a joint platoon of border guards as enforcement. Skirmishes in Stukalova Balka.
The opponent advancement from occupied Lutugino to the south was stopped near settlement Kruglik, toward Novosvetlovka – near Novoivanovka.
Ukrainians should not be underestimated. The third mobilization would refill worn brigades, add a couple of fresh (unscared), add a new brigade of “naziskunks”. It will be difficult, very difficult.

Posted by: Fete | Aug 23 2014 4:53 utc | 61

The evershifting positions of Western governments seem to show up again:
Russia Reminds UN that Ukraine Agreed to Let Russia Deliver Aid on August 12 | Politics | RIA Novosti

UNITED NATIONS, August 23 (RIA Novosti) – Russia has sent a humanitarian convoy to the east of Ukraine, considering that it has received official authorization of Kiev government, Russian Ambassador to the UN Vitaly Churkin said.

The corresponding note was received on August 12, Churkin said, noting that the humanitarian aid to Syria was delivered without the consent of the authorities of the country.

Posted by: Fran | Aug 23 2014 5:39 utc | 63

@21 plantman
The deployment of “RUSSIANS ARE INSIDE UKRAINE SHOOTING ARTILLERY” came at the same time as the humanitarian convoy. The propaganda tactics are so dusty and worn out. It’s shameful
@25 Okie Farmer
If that’s true, wow. What Saker calls the “atlantic integrationists” won. Russia will never thrive with these cowards in power. Strelkov wanted to do what was right, to turn Novorossiya into a real state with equality for all. What will the people get, more oligarchs, more fucking shit. God damn

Posted by: Crest | Aug 23 2014 6:53 utc | 65

@61 guest77
Unfortunately, you make too much sense.

Posted by: Thumper | Aug 23 2014 7:19 utc | 67

@ralphieboy #65:

Call me when Russia starts to allow gay marriage and we will talk gay rights parity.

Russia will never have gay marriage, because that notion is silly and self-contradictory.
For decades, we were told that marriage is an outmoded and patriarchal institution. At the same time, treating homosexuality as absolutely just as normal as heterosexuality has been portrayed as the current outstanding achievement of Western civilization. If being gay is so cool and cutting edge, why are gay people obsessed with having access to an institution which progressive circles considered to be obsolete?
The US State Department recently announced that the promotion of “gay rights” is going to be part of its policy. That alone should make it clear to everyone that “gay rights” are an artificial issue created by Western power structures in an attempt to create the illusion that some, any kind of progress is still occurring in Western societies.
Gay marriage has been used as a wedge issue manufactured by strategists of the US Democratic Party, as the liberal equivalent of the abortion wedge issue used by Republicans. Recently, as part of its project of world domination, the US has started using this artifact of internal US politics as yet another “human rights” issue with which to bash its enemy of the day.

Posted by: Demian | Aug 23 2014 7:45 utc | 69

○ Fitch Downgrades Ukraine to ‘CCC’
Fitch Ratings has downgraded Ukraine’s long-term local currency IDR to ‘CCC’ from ‘B-‘ amid political transition and geopolitical unrest as government solvency has deteriorated.
○ Hryvnia devaluation in H1, 2014 reduces direct investment in Ukraine by 11.9% | Interfax Ukraine | Aug. 14, 2014 |

Posted by: Oui | Aug 23 2014 7:56 utc | 71

@Fran: The Spiegel link you provided is proof of Putin’s Machiavellian plan to conquer the world. Russian Spetsnaz in camouflage.

Posted by: SingleStrandOfSilk | Aug 23 2014 10:08 utc | 73

BenAris @bneeditor 1h
#BREAKING: Russian humanitarian aid trucks deliver humanitarian aid and go home again, nothing else happened
(Putin scores big PR victory)

Posted by: brian | Aug 23 2014 10:11 utc | 75

Gay marriage is a cultural issue, and all cultures have their own mores — which do change over time in response to changing social and material conditions. That said, I’m really not sure what is behind some people’s insistence that certain other countries conform to their personal cultural norms.
Why would one be so concerned about gay marriage in Russia and not gay rights in our ally, Saudi Arabia — which assuredly are a million times worse?
Why does one living in a cosmopolitan city in the west feel the need to legislate cultural norms among, say. the Komi peoples of Russia’s far north or the Orok people of Sakhalin Oblast? To me, this is the worst form of cultural imperialism. And, obviously, such patronizing meddling — which the US is famous for — won’t help anyone, and can only cause needless suffering.
One cannot hold up the US as a beacon of progressive rights without some background. Let’s start with an issue of far greater importantance than gay marriage: slavery. Spain enacted the first European law abolishing colonial slavery in 1542. Russia came in second of the European nations and abolished slavery in 1723. Other nations followed, for instance, Haiti in 1804, Britain in 1807, Denmark in 1848. All nations abolished slavery peacefully. The US came in dead last of all major western powers, only abolishing slavery in 1865 after a horrifying civil war which left millions dead and wounded and much of the nation in ruins.
Let’s take another index of social welfare: social security. We owe the creation of the modern welfare state to that great Liberal social reformer, Otto Von Bismark (snark), who instituted the modern world’s first Social Security laws in 1889. Other countries followed, for instance Argentina in 1904, Australia in 1908, etc. The US again, came in dead last for major world powers in 1935, only beating tiny Niger by a few years. And the US elite were so against any benefits for their population that they staged an abortive coup (the “Business Plot,” detailed by Smedley Butler), against President Roosevelt a year earlier in a cruel and heartless attempt to prevent any alleviation of human suffering in the very heart of the great depression.
America’s regressive nature should not shock any student of America’s endless militarism and history of toppling almost any progressive government ever, worldwide. Indeed, it is no surprise that all but one of the worst countries to be gay in are America’s allies, among them: Afghanistan (which has been under American occupation for the last ten years), Saudi Arabia, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nigeria, Uganda, Singapore and Jamaica. Clearly the US-led anti-Russian propaganda effort is not motivated by a policy of protecting LGBT rights everywhere.
Earlier, I argued that gay rights are related to the mores of the people of an area or country. Iran is an interesting example of this: Homosexuality is illegal — punishable by death, which does occur — however, transexuality is legal in the country and Iran performs the second-highest rate of sex-change operations in the world (just behind Thailand), even going so far as to offer government funding for the procedure.
It should be remembered that America’s fascination with LGBT rights is extraordinarily recent. Only 50 years ago, NYC attempted to close down all of its gay bars. At the time of the Stonewall riots five years later, which I remember well, police still reserved the right to raid gay bars on a regular basis and arrest and publicly out and destroy anyone they so desired. As recently as 1986, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled in Bowers v. Hardwick, that homosexual sex was not protected under the right to privacy. Indeed, the entire same-sex marriage movement in the US is barely ten years old, with most of the progress occurring in the past three years. These facts should give one even greater pause when presuming to tell people in other countries how they should live their lives.
Having established America’s real record in progressive causes worldwide, let’s move on to an examination of gay rights parity with the Russian Federation. And here I concede that the one right that gays have in some parts of America that they do not have in Russia is gay marriage — at least in 19 states, but not in the whole country.
But what are the conditions for LGBT people in those other parts of America?
Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, who is running for Governor next term, gives law enforcement a green light to arrest gays under Virginia’s statute, stating he believes it’s appropriate to formulate public policy on the premise that homosexuals engage in behavior that is intrinsically wrong and offensive to natural law.
In Tennessee, when voters passed a constitutional ban on same sex marriage in 2006, the legislature began ramping up their anti-gay agenda, merrily focusing on legislation such as “Don’t Say Gay” (in the midst of two gay teens committing suicide), or changes to Tennessee’s anti-bullying law to allow students to speak against gays for…religious reasons, or this gem — the transphobic bathroom bill.
Michigan, one of few states that explicitly prohibit adoption by same-sex couples, is also the only state in which surrogacy is completely illegal.
From Utah’s statutes: “Materials adopted by a local school board . . . shall . . . comply with state law and state board rules . . . prohibiting instruction . . . in the advocacy of homosexuality.”
From Arizona’s statutes: “No district shall include in its course of study instruction which: 1. Promotes a homosexual life-style. 2. Portrays homosexuality as a positive alternative life-style. 3. Suggests that some methods of sex are safe methods of homosexual sex.”
Alabama and Texas mandate that sex-education classes emphasize that homosexuality is “not a lifestyle acceptable to the general public.” Moreover, the Alabama and Texas statutes mandate that children be taught that “homosexual conduct is a criminal offense,” despite the fact that this is a lie.
Next, let’s compare LGBT rights in the US vs. the Russian Federation:
In the Russian Federation homosexuality was decriminalized in 1993, while in the US in 12 States & the US military gay sex is criminalized and illegal. Indeed, in some states sodomy laws have been invoked even when sexual intercourse did not occur. For instance, in 2009 police kicked two gay men out of a restaurant in Texas for kissing.
Let’s compare workplace security, since without economic rights, other rights are unattainable.
In the Russian Federation, the Russian Federation Constitution (Article 19) declares equal rights of every human regardless of gender, race, nationality, language, ancestry, amount of property in possession or job position, place of living, religion, political or other views, affiliation to non-governmental organizations and other conditions. Under Russian Labor Code, dismissal of an employee must meet certain statutory grounds and sexual orientation is not one of them. As a result, an employer may not dismiss an employee solely because of the employee’s sexual orientation. Meanwhile, in the US there is no federal law that consistently protects LGBT individuals from employment discrimination.
In the Russian Federation, since 1997 transgender people are able to change their legal gender after an appropriate medical procedure, while in the US there is no uniform process for a transgender person to legally change their gender.
Finally, let’s look at hate crimes in the two countries: In the years 2010-12, Russia recorded just 18 anti-gay hate crimes (a legitimate, not “massaged” statistic), while the US recorded 4, 476 anti-gay hate crimes, or almost 4 a day! Furthermore, Russia has recorded just one single anti-LGBT murder in years, while the US had 25 LGBTQ persons murdered in crimes of hate in 2012 alone!
The difference in levels of hate crimes and murder is astounding, beyond compare really — especially considering the shrill, patronizing, and accusatory rhetoric that spews from US officials towards the Russian Federation — but I will leave it to the reader to speculate why.
In conclusion, there really is no comparison between the uniform, just, and non-violent way that gays are generally treated in Russia, and the arbitrary, capricious, hateful, and violent — even murderously so — way that gays are often treated in the US.
Hey, ralphieboy, call me when Mississippi starts to allow gay marriage and we will talk gay rights parity.
Those interested in exploring the topic more deeply are advised to read the remarkable January 2014 report by US gay-rights advocate, Brian M. Heiss, who surprised himself at his conclusions (He, believing the hateful propaganda directed at Russia, set out to prove the opposite!): Russian Federation Anti-Gay Laws: An Analysis & Deconstruction.
PS:

Putin has very subtle ways of suppressing dissent

Putin doesn’t suppress dissent, the Federation of Russia does, as do all countries, but that is a topic for another post. Let’s not get carried away with personalizing and demonizing here.

Posted by: Malooga | Aug 23 2014 12:36 utc | 77

@demian:
You are right on all accounts — I tried to stay focused above and not get into those issues, but yes, very much so. Just another cudgel of empire.
Furthermore, why should the irreligious state get into marriage at all? Why not leave it to the religious sphere, where people can choose a faith which represents their beliefs, and the person they want to perform the ceremony? This would prevent the purposeful dividing of society, causing strife, hate, and resentment — if not promoting outright violence.
The one civil issue involved is survivor rights and payments. But what of the disabled person who has one caretaker their entire life — who they are not married to. Why couldn’t that caretaker, who has sacrificed their entire life in caring, be named as a survivor. For that matter, why can’t everyone designate one person — whoever they wish — as a survivor. Otherwise, we really are discriminating against the celibate, and those who live with one great friend or buddy.
Anyway, that has always been my position, and that is why I have always stood against same-sex marriage as a special case law, where a general law applicable to everyone — as I describe above — would be more just.

Posted by: Malooga | Aug 23 2014 12:55 utc | 79

@177
Continued..
I should have posted this in my post at 177 for added emphesis. I think stevie is an alien marooned on earth. This is for any young ones out there that may not have heard.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p3KpUO6t9qQ

Posted by: really | Aug 23 2014 13:58 utc | 81

Malooga @77: good to read a thorough examination of these issues.
One mistake that I noticed is that Slavery was not abolished in the British Empire until the 1830s. What occurred in 1807 was the abolition of the Slave Trade, which is the US did as well in that year, effective Jan 1 1808, I believe.

Posted by: bevin | Aug 23 2014 15:51 utc | 83

Demian @69. This is right on, you point to something that has always struck me as incompatible with honesty on this issue. Gay men that I know regard marriage with horror, as an institution it is one of the things that drove them to make the choice they made.
Capitalist society systematically destroys every institution binding individuals into communities unmediated by greed- the family, oldest of all human institutions and the original community, is no exception.

Posted by: bevin | Aug 23 2014 16:05 utc | 85

I hope everyone has enjoyed the spectacle of the junta supporters going way out on a rhetorical limb over the aid convoy, then having it sawed off by a 48 hour round trip of 250 trucks.

Posted by: Thirdeye | Aug 23 2014 20:01 utc | 87

Kind of off topic:
Russia and China better support Turkmenistan. Just heard on the news some “analyst” yapping about taliban supporting isis links. Those that aren’t aware here, which are very few I would guess, should check these links.
http://thediplomat.com/2014/07/is-turkmenistan-the-next-central-asian-tiger/
http://gundogar.org/?02200514479000000000000011000000
http://orientalreview.org/2014/08/20/turkmenistan-as-the-three-for-one-staging-ground-of-eurasian-destabilization/

Posted by: really | Aug 23 2014 20:29 utc | 89

Well said Malooga,#77. I’m transgendered so I have a vested interest in this, but the endless Russia bashing over GLBTI issues is pathetic that reaches new levels of western hypocrisy (and that is a tough job). Sure there are better places than Russia to GLTBI….but there are a heck of a lot of worse places. And,as you note, quite a few close ‘allies’ of the west are horrific…like they would kill me if I went there.
Note that in some legal areas they are lagging the ‘mainstream’ western countries, but in some areas they were ahead. Like, for us TG people, a moderately important thing(!) “Right to change legal gender”, Russia 1997, Britain? 2005.
What is different is that Russia is more socially conservative and religious than many (but not all if you take into account sub-regions/states) than many current western countries. Plus there are significant differences across the country, just as there is the US and many other places. So I see them as a work in progress, with a fair way to go but by no means the worst around.
And bashing them over the head and shouting at them is counter productive for all the GLTBI people there, as what happens is that they become seen as ‘US/etc tools’ and symbols of western cultural ‘imperialism’, rather than as just ordinary Russians who are entitled to be treated in that way without any discrimination. These are issues for quiet and gentle diplomacy, not ‘bashing’.
Mote in the eye, while ignoring the plank in your own your eye stuff this.
The day the US gives Saudi Arabia a seriously hard time over GLBTI rights (oh and the rights of atheists, Christians, Jews, Shias, etc, etc) is the day I’ll take their bleating about Russia seriously. Note the lack of breath holding here…..

Posted by: OldSkeptic | Aug 24 2014 0:10 utc | 91

@OldSkeptic #91:

What is different is that Russia is more socially conservative and religious than many (but not all if you take into account sub-regions/states) than many current western countries.

Honestly, I don’t think that Russia is any more religious than Scandinavia or Germany. What is different about Russia is that for 74 years, Christianity was stigmatized and replaced by another religion, Marxism-Leninism. It is natural that, for the purposes of reconstructing its national identity, Russia would turn to its old religion, after everyone realized that Marxism-Leninism is a false religion.
In most cases, Russians making references to Russian Orthodoxy are simply affirming their cultural identity, as opposed to expressing religious views. (This is not to say that Russian atheists do not take Christianity seriously, as German intellectuals, but not Anglophone intellectuals, do.)

Posted by: Demian | Aug 24 2014 1:32 utc | 93

really, that article from Oriental Review was terrific. Here’s another:
http://orientalreview.org/2014/06/23/the-reverse-brzezinski-the-ultimate-eurasian-dilemma-ii/

Posted by: okie farmer | Aug 24 2014 7:48 utc | 95

Good god. The times we live in… Everything is going mad, I tell you.
I dont know who to believe anymore. Nuclear war on the horizon, the coming collapse of the world financial system, privatisation of water, systemic genocide on a global scale, and fuck me, this corporate mentality insidiously infusing itself with a plethora of different cultures. Im getting tired of reading this stuff. I want to crawll back into my hobbithole and smoke my pipe and tend my garden until I eventually die from an overdose of pot…

Posted by: Dan | Aug 24 2014 14:57 utc | 97