tristes_tigres' Journal

Украинцы хотят повоевать ещё
Тысячи протестующих против перемирия в Донбассе

Ещё одна галочка в чек-лист "фашисты ли майдановцы"

( Read more... ) I wish to present evidence that considerable numbers of Western journalists and academic experts have been deliberately misrepresenting the nature of the ‘Maidan’. I also want to comment on recent manipulation of the ‘Jewish question’ by the radical Ukrainian nationalists.
( Read more... )

A culture of mobilization

One would expect a democratic movement to overflow with substantive debate on a wide range of policy issues, with diverse opinions freely expressed and received with interest and respect. The impression that I have formed of the moral and intellectual atmosphere of the Maidan, on the basis of an admittedly limited exploration of relevant sources (speeches, articles, blogs, videos etc.), is quite different. The dominant values seem to be those of a camp of the ‘forces of absolute good’ mobilized against the ‘forces of absolute evil’ – unity and loyalty to the common cause. Differences (on policy toward the EU, for instance) are glossed over for the sake of unity. The vigorous expression of important differences, when it does occur, easily triggers violence [12].

Russian speakers in Ukraine are often pilloried as ‘Sovoks’ – people still influenced by Soviet patterns of thinking. It seems to me that this label can be applied with equal justification to Maidanites.( Read more... )