2023-4-24: Russian economist Sergei Guriev doesn't understand putin, he analyses the world with economic thinking

I watched the video DW news: Will depleted funds put an end to Russia's war in Ukraine? | Conflict Zone a week or so ago, and it was illuminating in how clearly it showed me (again) the following: People see the world in terms of how they already think, most people are NOT truth seekers, and they do not adjust their views in light of any evidence.

I placed 2 comments with that video that you may or may not be able to see because of youtube's ghosting of comments.

This guy doean't understand putler: in 2007 putler made a speech lamenting the decline of the soviet union, perhaps he did it even earlier on other occasions. Then the 2008 invasion of parts of Georgia, in 2014 Crimea and the Donbass. He didn't become anti-western and he didn't create the idea of empire building in 2014 nor even in 2009 related to economic issues, that was already there! (see also the half-assed attempt to get into NATO which he didn't do as needed because he feels superior and wants everything done 'his way'). If you watch a TV series such as 'Russia: A journey with David Dimbleby' (BBC, 2008) you see the same sentiments in various people young and older, of misdsng having the status as they had at the time of the soviet union of being a world power. Putler is and always was what I call an idealistic psychopath: He just did what he thought he could get away with, which obviously expanded over time, and delusions of grandeur thus get attempted later on, not at the start. No empire building to protect his palaces, that is just nonsense.

And as a summary I added:

Guriev doesn't understand putin at all. He only thinks in terms of money, because he is an economist who sees the world as he thinks about the world, as he is not a truth seeker. The time table of events show that his assertions about why putin invaded Crimea and Ukraine, are wrong. it is not about protecting palaces, and only to some degree about an image to the internal audience.

He says that putin started building palaces which shows he is not an empire builder. That is wrong, it shows nothing of the kind. All criminals start small, doing things they think they can get away with. You can analyse that this is how everyone does things from what you were hesitant about to put out on the internet, or do in public etc. You do something small, then you see "Oh, it's ok" and so you feel you can do more. So obviously it is logical that putin didn't start empire building, and note further that a major issue to deal with first in Russia in the early 2000s was still the corruption and power struggles. Only once that was dealt with could he start to think about other plans. Obviously.

He further says that putin started empire building and propaganda from the issue of the global financial issues in 2008, which is false because he made a speech in 2007 already about the demise of the Soviet union having been a disaster. You can also see it in his behaviour towards NATO and the acceptance into that organisation, that he wanted to be special, as others were not important and he/Russia should be considered special just like it was considered a superpower in the cold war era. See https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/nov/04/ex-nato-head-says-putin-wanted-to-join-alliance-early-on-in-his-rule.

Last modified: 2023-4-24