"Does this stupid philistine writer suggest that there is just something in the " Russian soul " that makes it a force for tyranny in the world.... "

 

[" What happened in Ukraine seems to be part of a disturbing pattern in Russian history – The Russians are so predictable. Whenever they commit atrocities and the evidence of their misdeeds is incontrovertible, one can be absolutely certain that they will deny any wrongdoing. That’s true today; that was also true of the past."]

Does this stupid philistine writer suggest that there is just something in the " Russian soul " that makes it a force for tyranny in the world despite vast changes in culture, in civilization, political and social evolution , in scientific knowledge and amazing technology ?

How is the notion of a FIXED national character any less absurd than a FIXED racial or ethnic character ?

Would not Nazi ideology say the same thing about SLAVIC people in general ( which justified a war of conquest on them ) ? About the Jews ( which justified the Holocaust ) ? Are Black people more prone to crime and violence than White Europeans ( why waste money on social-welfare programs ? ) ?

Does a citizen of Russia inherit a disposition for pogroms and war atrocities ?

What is so EXCEPTIONAL about American civilization and history ?

Is there no " Science of History " that rises above such rubbish ? Did not Marx and Engels make a promising beginning ( their CLASS STRUGGLE , long view of history ) ?

To believe in FIXED national traits is to enter Carl Sagan's " Demon Haunted World ".