Things Move So Quickly In This World

Peter Morris

November 27, 2024.

Writing articles these days is such a challenge at times. The news changes so fast. Back in the day, before the internet, we mostly had to wait for the newspapers in the morning to have a clue what was happening in the world, or to see an entertaining (for a bloke) ‘page 3’.

I know, I know - things you’re not allowed to utter these days.

Of course, back then I didn’t realise newspapers were politically aligned, and we were all fed selected information from whatever direction the newspaper was affiliated to. Naïve – certainly. But that’s how it was for me and I suspect most others.

Down to today’s chosen topic…things will have moved on before I finish typing this.

Russia Is The Bogey-Man. That’s What We’ve Been Programmed to Believe.

As far back as I can remember, and long before that probably (I was born in the 1950’s), the general view in the West regarding Russia was that the place was a vile, horrible country with tyrants ruling, people dressed in rags, virtually nothing on the shelves in stores, even if you had money to buy things. Long, long queues outside bread shops just to get your ‘allocation’, whatever that was.

All this may well have elements of truth in there. It might for all I know, be completely true. I’m no historian. I’m just explaining the ‘perception’ of ordinary folk like me - being fed a daily diet of propaganda from every quarter. Of course, ordinary people believed anything we were told, pretty much without questioning it. It’s just how it was.

Don’t forget, back then we only had a few news outlets. For years as a kid, we didn’t have a TV at all, and eventually when we did, there were just a couple of channels. Most news came from newspapers. That was pretty much it.

Therefore, Joe Public could be sold any sort of guff; although my biggest concern was whether or not I would get my sixpence pocket money on a Saturday. Gradually, as I got older, things didn’t seem to add up properly. The Berlin wall came down and I wondered why it was there in the first place. So, I did a bit of curious looking into it. I couldn’t call it research really, just finding out a bit more.

Then there was the nuclear threat from Russia but don’t forget, that’s reciprocal too with NATO creeping ever closer to the Russian borders. Is it any wonder they get a bit jittery? There are maps freely available which show how the West has got closer and closer to the Russian border, persuading countries formerly allied to the old eastern Bloc to join NATO and with a view to seemingly surrounding Russia. Not intentional of course…one might roll one’s eyes at the suggestion.

I remember the TV adverts on how to survive a nuclear strike; take doors off their hinges and construct a tent-like thing and hide under that. Or hide under the kitchen table. All complete nonsense of course, but designed to keep us frightened of Russia.

I had heard stories of East Germans trying to get over the Berlin wall, or under it, or around it and wondered why the desperation. I was even more puzzled. Anyway, it finally fell, much to the celebration of huge swathes of people. The cold war was over. So it seemed. There were various ‘goings on’ in Russia, with changes of leadership and so on - the hard liners were being kept at bay or swept aside.

Eventually Russia opened up a bit more and became accessible for Westerners, even including tourism. I haven’t been there myself but never mind – I read the news stories. I distinctly remember the very first McDonalds opening in Moscow, and it was quite a big deal with people queuing to get inside. It was slowly becoming more, shall we say, ‘Westernised.’

I realise however, it still can be a harsh regime, even today. Anything the powers that be deem as being subversive is quickly snuffed out. So the element of dominance is still there. But the fact is there are, for all intents and purposes, companies there, running businesses, paying employees a wage and making profit from the making of goods or providing services. Mining for coal, mining for oil, gas, metals, rare earth elements, you name it. They seem to have, with their vast land area and resources an almost limitless supply of things that the rest of the world really need and want.

So, it’s easy. They sell it and make a profit. That’s how everything works, or should do.

Socialism however, never ever, works. People are not equal. Much as our current Labour Party would advocate. Does anyone reading this get no-strings-attached gifts from anyone rich? Probably not - where’s the equality there? There’s always going to be a separation. Like it or not.

I’ve seen countless video clips around showing night life, presumably on a Saturday night, of the scenes in Moscow. Women dressed in their finery, with jewellery, carrying handbags openly. People use mobile phones, apparently with not a care in world and generally having ‘fun.’ Much like it used to be in the UK once upon a time.

So is Russia ‘really’ the bogey-man? For starters, Putin is adamant he wants nothing whatsoever to do with the World Economic Forum (WEF), or the World Health Organisation (WHO). He won’t allow the country to be flooded with illegal migrants. Is there any wonder why they don’t head to Moscow, St. Petersburg or any other Russian city?

Is it ‘really’ so bad? Contrast that with let’s say, a Saturday night out for women in London. Don’t dress too provocatively. Only wear ‘tat’ jewellery. Don’t wear any actual gold rings. Don’t wear an expensive watch. Never, ever use your mobile phone in a public place. If you have a handbag keep it firmly locked under your arm, or best, don’t have one at all. Don’t go or leave anywhere alone - the list goes on.

Yes, we all know that every country on the planet has their issues with home grown nutcases, thieves and generally bad people. Russia suffers from that too now and again. But they don’t consciously ‘import’ them on an industrial scale like we do in the UK.

We know that Russia carries out ‘missions’ to kill people they consider a threat to them, like the Novichok thing in Salisbury in the UK; cyber activities elsewhere on the planet. But I’m pretty confident in saying it works the other way round too. We Westerners aren’t exactly squeaky clean.

Here, we in the UK live in a supposedly free society, with free speech (really?) and all the benefits that brings.

Yet we now have Keir Starmer, who is very obviously a rabid Socialist (we didn’t know quite the level of it until he lied to get elected…by virtue of a significant minority of eligible voters). The Prime Minister who has locked up in prison countless numbers of people for things he doesn’t like being said; labelling pretty much everyone who doesn’t agree with his ideology as being far right thugs. Sanctioned the harassment of people for ‘non-crime hate speech’ - the biggest joke I can think of. What the hell does that even mean? I don’t have a clue. Surely non-crime speaks for itself. It’s not a crime. That’s it.

All the above may not be 100% factually accurate, as it is just my perception of how it is and was. But I am nonetheless bound to ask - Is Russia really the Bogey-Man?

© Peter Morris, 2024

Image - Kotchetkov / EPA /Shutterstock

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