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I still think democracy among those insidiously intrusive Western values Russia resists so fiercely Joel Send a noteboard - 14/03/2017 02:37:39 PM

Russia does not have elections: It has coups and/or assassinations, usually AGAINST leaders foolish enough to try "imposing" liberal democratic principles where they are unwelcome, if not outright incomprehensible.

So speculation is interesting, and thorough detailed historical analysis always interesting, but I doubt Kerenskys government had any more hope than the Weimar Republic, and for the same reason, regardless of any particular policy or policies he pursued. In America, we like to cite ourselves as a textbook example of democratic revolution rather than an "exceptional" deviation from the norm, but the reality is a revolt over taxation (or any other government) without representation is only possible in a nation whose residents are culturally conditioned to EXPECT representative government as no more than their due as citizens. Most abuses that prompted our revolt would have been passively accepted without comment virtually anywhere else in the world, as would the British governments repressive response to our protests.

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The February Revolution and Kerensky’s Missed Opportunity - 13/03/2017 09:37:00 PM 807 Views
Fascinating stuff - 13/03/2017 10:52:58 PM 430 Views
Who knows? It could have been worse off. - 13/03/2017 11:37:54 PM 521 Views
What's your opinion on Lenin? - 14/03/2017 02:06:59 AM 467 Views
Lenin. A monster. - 14/03/2017 12:55:18 PM 497 Views
Thanks. I'll ask him too. *NM* - 14/03/2017 03:01:36 PM 237 Views
Lenin, Stalin and Trotsky were all bloodthirsty mass murderers. - 14/03/2017 08:59:06 PM 524 Views
That's fascinating. But give me a book recommendation! - 14/03/2017 09:15:57 PM 431 Views
Start with a general history of Russia - 14/03/2017 10:17:22 PM 551 Views
Excellent. Thank you. It's next on the list. - 15/03/2017 02:11:14 AM 495 Views
Russian history is as depressing as they come. - 15/03/2017 12:08:15 PM 493 Views
Read Figes first, I suppose. - 14/03/2017 10:55:23 PM 456 Views
Thanks, Tom. I've been putting off reading good literature because of my unfamiliarity with Russia. *NM* - 15/03/2017 02:12:10 AM 221 Views
Which books have you put off reading? *NM* - 15/03/2017 12:05:32 PM 208 Views
DEMONS and THE BROTHERS KARAMAZOV are the big two. - 15/03/2017 02:58:13 PM 447 Views
You don't necessarily need to know the history. - 15/03/2017 03:15:38 PM 485 Views
I'm always afraid I'm missing something critical, though! - 15/03/2017 03:50:59 PM 432 Views
Annotations are amazing. My eBook version of War and Peace was the same. - 15/03/2017 04:03:59 PM 452 Views
My High School English teacher neglected Russian literature. - 16/03/2017 01:46:29 AM 414 Views
Hmmmm. - 16/03/2017 01:18:14 PM 454 Views
Tolstoy was a reprehensible human being - 15/03/2017 04:02:52 PM 429 Views
I had no idea. I was under the impression he was deeply devout. - 16/03/2017 01:47:43 AM 444 Views
Here's one example: - 16/03/2017 02:06:45 AM 449 Views
Good lord. The man sounds deranged. But that's fascinating! Is there a good biography on him? *NM* - 16/03/2017 07:50:10 AM 219 Views
Pavel Basinsky's bio is best - 16/03/2017 02:46:47 PM 620 Views
Getting it now. Thanks. *NM* - 16/03/2017 11:06:25 PM 212 Views
For what it's worth, I read Lenin & Trotsky as genuine idealists, while Stalin as just a thug - 15/03/2017 11:16:36 AM 502 Views
I think that's entirely incorrect. - 15/03/2017 04:00:54 PM 513 Views
I didn't mean stupid or brutish, I meant more like a mafia don than a statesman - 16/03/2017 12:18:34 PM 402 Views
Well if you want to completely redefine the phrase "just a thug", perhaps you're right - 16/03/2017 02:43:38 PM 428 Views
Good point - 16/03/2017 09:52:29 PM 561 Views
I hear what you're saying, but... - 16/03/2017 11:53:19 PM 455 Views
Attempt at clarification - 17/03/2017 12:55:03 AM 527 Views
Hehehe..."Fuck off" - 19/03/2017 05:23:49 PM 468 Views
Seems kind of nonsensical - 14/03/2017 01:33:49 AM 529 Views
Good reply. - 14/03/2017 12:57:47 PM 511 Views
They weren't really wrong - 14/03/2017 01:30:07 PM 546 Views
I do enjoy historical "what if" situations. - 14/03/2017 01:47:27 AM 444 Views
Hi there. - 14/03/2017 01:02:44 PM 413 Views
I still think democracy among those insidiously intrusive Western values Russia resists so fiercely - 14/03/2017 02:37:39 PM 528 Views
Is it your persistant anti-Russia bias that makes you so dogmatic? - 14/03/2017 02:51:23 PM 450 Views
I have no problem with Russia, only its government - 14/03/2017 03:07:14 PM 556 Views
Really? - 14/03/2017 03:15:10 PM 475 Views
What a terrible article - 14/03/2017 08:04:50 PM 421 Views
I thought you would think this way. - 15/03/2017 12:04:57 PM 501 Views
I can't decide what I think about Evans - 15/03/2017 04:10:05 PM 414 Views

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