The Other Shoe: The 'Putin-Love' Syndrome of the Far Right

Welcome back My Dear Readers to The Other Shoe. This weekend, Sunday to be exact, the people of the Crimea voted. They voted, nearly unanimously, to separate the province of Crimea from the Ukraine (as it has been since the end of the second world war) and become a part of Russia. This happens on the heels of the majority of the people in the Ukraine seeking to sever ties with Russia and become a part of the European Union. If completed, this loss of the Ukraine, would stand as the single greatest loss of land mass to Russia since the end of the United Soviet Socialist Republic (U.S.S.R.).

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[caption id="attachment_2531" align="aligncenter" width="630"]

United Soviet Socialist Republic 1984[/caption]

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IN September of 2008 the state of Georgia (in eastern Russia) sought to separate from the former soviet republic, too. Russian President Vladimir Putin sent troops, into the sovereign nation of Georgia, to prevent the will of the people becoming a reality. Twice, in the past six years, President Putin has engaged in what can only be seen as a ‘dictatorial land grab’ by a tyrannical leader. This is how the majority of the international community sees these actions. As well, this is how these two incidents are seen by; N.A.T.O. and the United Nations.

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When the USSR collapsed, America clapped. We patted each other on the back, in a self-congratulatory move for “ending the cold war”. Vladimir Putin has been the President of Russia since 7 May 2012. He previously served as President from 2000 to 2008. As well, he served as Prime Minister of Russia from 1999 to 2000 and again from 2008 to 2012.[1] Not since the dissolution of the U.S.S.R. (and the end of the ‘Cold War’) has the world seen ‘land grabs’ by Russia of this size. To the majority of people who study foreign affairs, international affairs, and Russia, one thing is completely obvious.

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Under the dictatorial direction of President Vladimir Putin Russia is using military force to try and cobble together the old U.S.S.R.. More troubling is how certain elements in America are ignoring the risks to the European Union, and the states that wish to leave Russia, and glamorizing President Putin for political gain here in America. In their efforts to turn everything against President Obama, at all costs. These media outlets, and their talking heads, are putting President Putin on a pedestal and demeaning President Obama by comparison. Listening to one cable network, Fox ‘News’, I have heard their anchors state that “President Putin wrestles bears and tigers, while President Obama wears Mom-pants”. [I will be the first to admit I have no idea what “Mom pants” are, but this term is being used in an insulting fashion towards our sitting President]. First, the truth about tiger that President Putin ‘killed’.

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“She was tranquillized, placed in a snare and forced to lie in wait as the infamously tardy leader got to the site, according to the International Fund for Animal Welfare. After Putin inspected the big cat, helping to place a GPS satellite collar on it and, reportedly, giving it a kiss, Serga was taken on the long drive back to the Khabarovsk zoo. In the days that followed, the rare tiger died, unable to recover from the three tranquillisers used by scientists during the PR stunt.”[2]

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I have researched this incident through several news outlets in Europe and each telling of the truth is essentially the same and sticks to the facts presented above. Propaganda in RUSSIA? Goes together like baseball and apple pie, in America. Yet, I have witnessed, several times with my own eyes and ears, anchors on various Fox ‘News’ shows present President Putin as a “man who wrestles tigers and bears, to death!” Well, now, if that were all we were talking about I would just look the other way and say (to myself) “anyone that believes what they are saying… without verifying the validity of these statements… likely would believe anything…” and let it go.

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It is so much worse than it appears. The continual repeating of these falsehoods, the use of these falsehoods to glamorize a leader (likely) guilty of invading sovereign nations, the cold blooded murder of “dissidents” in Georgia and the Ukraine and Crimea, the use of Russian troops to quash free elections, and multiple violations of human rights. To place this man on a pedestal, and then to conversely ridicule and insult President Obama as; “not being a man, like President Putin” , “making America weak in the face of a great leader like President Putin”, and “President Putin rides horses bareback and shirtless while President Obama wears mom-pants”? This is not just a matter of ‘poor values” or using opportunistic comparisons based on falsehoods to damage the reputation of our sitting President. No, this graduates to a higher and more heinous level of rhetoric, this borders on treasonous. You see, there is a huge difference (in this given situation) between the exercises of freedom of speech and what is happening with these anchors and this network. Let me see if I can do my best at explaining and, at the same time, do my level best to not insult those that choose to watch this network.

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See, that is the difference in my approach (today, as compared to previous perceptions of my writing) and I am making a conscious and deliberate effort to alter and improve how I communicate. I do not want, either with intent or by accident, to insult or demean anyone just because of decisions made on which channel to watch. I, firmly, believe that a person is not defined by what they choose to watch, unless they chose to let their decisions define.

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President Franklin D. Roosevelt was elected President of the United States a record four times. The whole time he was in office he was unable to walk on his own due to neurological losses associated with polio. His entire time in the White House F.D.R. used a wheelchair to get around, or was carried. However, in the more than a decade in office no media outlet ever took photographs of him in a wheelchair or being carried. These media outlets certainly had the opportunity, the means yet they did not! (Except fro one photo made public in his last term in office, ONE photo in more than twelve years) WHY?

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Why did all the; newspapers, News Reel, movie cameras and radio reporters not make an issue of his disability? My Dear Readers, be you a reader in America, or England, Hong Kong or Cyprus, Spain or Iceland you all know that today every single media outlet would try to get as many compromising photos as they could possibly publish… and they would publish every single one they obtained. The more revealing, the better. WHY!?!

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Respect for the Office of President of the Untied States of America! Further, these reporters, cameramen, photographers all understood that if you; attack, demean, belittle, or weaken the image of a sitting President you do harm to the office of President and you weaken America in the eyes of the international community, and leaders. They understood that any momentary (fleeting) political gain would be far outweighed by the damage such photographs would do to our standing as a NATION. You simply cannot do harm to the man, without doing harm to the office.

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These news professionals understood the meaning of this quote;

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“Partisan politics stops at the water’s edge.” (in 1947, at the start of the Cold War, Vandenberg became chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Asserting that we must stop “partisan politics at the water's edge," he cooperated with the Truman administration in forging bipartisan support for the Truman Doctrine, the Marshall Plan, and NATO.)[3]

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This discretion is essential for our nation to operate effectively in international politics. IN 1947 Vandenberg, and; reporters, newspaper editors, radio reporters, and all professional members of the fourth estate clearly understood that to undermine the man, is to undermine the office. That, by undermining the office you do (at the very least) a grave injustice to your nation and (at worst) expose your nation to grave harm and even invasion by making our nation appear weak in the international community. I have an old saying

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“Perception dictates reality.”

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It is my humble opinion that these networks, in seeking to make themselves look better by making our President appear weak are doing harm to our nation, to the office of President of the United Sates, and even empowering President Putin’s illegal and immoral actions in the international community. That this political schadenfreude[4] was not practiced in our recent political past because the reporters of the day understood the consequences of their actions and placed nationalism and the ‘Good of the Nation’ ahead of party popularity, polls, and network standing. That we could do well by taking a lesson from the past and put the lives of the people of the Ukraine, the international strength of our nation and the betterment of our world ahead of; network ratings, party loyalty, personal agendas and hyper-partisanship.

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Now, let me be clear. I do not believe that anyone is seeking to do harm to our nation. I do not believe that these anchors and guests, speakers and hosts are (with forethought and malice) seeking to weaken America’s standing in the world community. I do not believe that these people are traitors and are willingly exposing our; troops, foreign dignitaries, and state department negotiators and officials to potential danger to their lives and/or the lives of their staff. I do not think that they are doing it willingly and with forethought or malice. However, I do strongly believe that their actions, their words, these ‘comparisons’ between a law abiding President Obama and the Russian President (that invades sovereign nations in an obvious effort to reconstitute the former soviet nation as Russia). are reckless! Their actions undermine credibility.

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The cerdibility of; Our Secretary of State, our Diplomats, our Military Leaders, the Vice President and President Obama and The Office of President of these United States. These reckless anchors, hosts, 'talking heads' do engage in hyperbole that is wrongheaded and can cost lives! This is why Vandenberg warned "Partisna politics stops at the water's edge." Especially during; times of war, times hightened security, and during international invasions of soverign nations (like the situation in the Ukraine, today). My Dear Readers, if I understand and realize this reality of politics and governance? I know that these media; reporters, hosts, anchors and 'talking heads' realize the same. Like the impaired judgement brought on by avarice, the reckless disregard and malice of shadenfreude, this overwhelming desire to side with (potentially) criminal elements of another nation's government just to (sophomorically) 'put down' the President of the United States is the ultimate in poor judgement that can/may cost lives! It is a bell that cannot be 'unrung', and there bloodlust for ratings and juvenille craving for shocking shadenfreude sets in motion actions with terrible consequence. Especially during times of internatinal instability, times of United Nations sanctions aginst member nations, and in the light of emergency meetings of the U.N. Security Council? That is the absolute worst time for school yeard taunts focused on our heads of states, and the President. "Partisan politics stops at the water's edge." One simple rule to follow to help assure the safety of all Americans... and the world.

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[caption id="attachment_2530" align="aligncenter" width="630"]

Russian Map Post USSR Breakdown[/caption]

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Further, I believe that we individuals should exercise great care. Exercise great care when it comes to placing party loyalty ahead of the betterment of our nation, and at the possible detriment of America’s international image. That, as Americans, we should exercise caution when; parroting rhetoric, devoting your viewer ship to, and supporting behaviors that can/do cause to undermine America’s standing in the international community. To understand that the people working in the State department and in our international talks and with NATO and the United Nations are not/ should not be targets for hyper-partisan rhetoric just for momentary social or political gain.

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That, in so doing, we act to jeopardize the very ideals we all hold dear and undermine the credibility of our nation on the international stage. My Dear Readers, I cannot tell you just how damaging talk… ‘loose talk’, like what we all see on this network and like networks works to undermine our national standing. I cannot tell you just how many times I have seen, in international games and threads and postings, intelligent and respected people of other (allied) nations question the motives of Americans engaged in this type of hyper-partisan rhetoric undermining/damaging the Office of President of the United States.

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That even, unwitting, detrimental remarks made to make some Republican ‘look better’ via schadenfreude directed at our sitting President. All too often, intelligent citizens of our foreign allies are taken aback by the overt and (even) sophomoric taunts and insults. They do not understand how any Americans could actually take sides against our sitting President by favoring (what Putin is predominately seen as) a violator of human rights, invader of sovereign nations, and someone seeking to bring back the U.S.S.R. in the 21^st century. We Americans must exercise greater caution. WE must put aside the sophomoric tactics, shutdown the hyper-partisanship and act/speak/think with putting our nation’s best interests first.

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[caption id="attachment_2532" align="aligncenter" width="630"]

USSR Republics Numbered Alphabetically[/caption]

POST Soviet States Numbered:

1.	Armenia
2.	Azerbaijan
3.	Belarus
4.	Estonia
5.	Georgia
6.	Kazakhstan
7.	Kyrgyzstan
8.	Latvia
9.	Lithuania
10.	Moldova
11.	Russia
12.	Tajikistan
13.	Turkmenistan
14.	Ukraine
15.	Uzbekistan

[5]

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We, America/Americans, did act deliberately in our recent past. We understood what it meant to put our nation ahead of party loyalty. We understood that “Loose lips, sink ships.” Let us not wait until it is too late, and the dogs of war are howling at our door before we tone down our rhetoric and think of the long term effect of our words and actions. I have faith in America, and Americans. I genuinely believe that if people fully understand the potential detriment that this type of hyper-partisan rhetoric has in our international affairs. That all Americans can and will act responsibly.

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I do not seek to cause further divides within our great nation. Honestly, I believe that if we work to tone down these hyper-partisan and hyperbolic types of rhetoric? It will work to bring our nation closer. I believe it is these walls of words that create the illusion of separation when, in reality, none exists. That the few seek to profit from proffering and building these imaginary walls of separation between Americans. That, we the people, are better than what we are lead to believe of ourselves. The true power of America lies in the hands of the average American. Working together, there is nothing that we cannot do, we can bring harmony to the places plagued with partisanship.

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America deserves better, and working together we can give it to ourselves and to our posterity.

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As always I am deeply honored that you come here and read my work.

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Thank YOU!

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P.S. In a nut shell, I am pointing out HOW elements of the Republican party (the "Far Right') will befriend and galmorize MURDEROUS TYRANTS just to further their effots to besmerch President Obama. As well, it is to the DETRIMENT of our nation that this ilk REFUSES to 'Halt Partisan Politics at the Water's Edge'! This idea was EMBRACED back in 1917, yet here in the 21st century... such a simple and FUNDEMENTAL law of politics and governance... ESCAPES Repubicans. just TODAY Senator John McCain was FORCED to backpeddle, from his 'Putin-Love' and side WITH President Obama.

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