Nice piece, though do I sense a note of joy at the end of the "American century"? Notwithstanding America's external & internal sins, considering the kinds of political values that prevail in America, Russia, and China, I would have mixed feelings about the the waxing of the latter 2 and the waning of the former. And if you know something about Russia today—the grave defects in its economy, political system, not to mention demography (esp. in the Far East)—it's not a given that its superpower (paper tiger?) status is sustainable. Was dismayed by Dilip Hiro's categorical end line "an unprovoked [Georgian] attack on the breakaway region of South Ossetia"—pure Russian propaganda, as it is a fact that the Georgians were provoked by cross-border shelling of their villages (and likely set up for a planned Russian invasion). This lowers my trust in Dilip Hiro's disengagement/objectivity.
a pity that the ultimate bad guys have so far outplayed the other bad guys (I don't know which are the baddest in the ME) who don't engage in that kind of brinkmanship. who knows if/when the rusky chickens come home to roost. http://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/27/opinion/playing-with-fear-russias-war-card.html?ref=opinion&_r=0
Nice piece, though do I sense a note of joy at the end of the "American century"? Notwithstanding America's external & internal sins, considering the kinds of political values that prevail in America, Russia, and China, I would have mixed feelings about the the waxing of the latter 2 and the waning of the former. And if you know something about Russia today—the grave defects in its economy, political system, not to mention demography (esp. in the Far East)—it's not a given that its superpower (paper tiger?) status is sustainable. Was dismayed by Dilip Hiro's categorical end line "an unprovoked [Georgian] attack on the breakaway region of South Ossetia"—pure Russian propaganda, as it is a fact that the Georgians were provoked by cross-border shelling of their villages (and likely set up for a planned Russian invasion). This lowers my trust in Dilip Hiro's disengagement/objectivity.