Actually, after reading carefully what he wrote, I think I can agree with much of it.
I don't see the current russian resurgence as anything communist, though.
It might be called somewhat more totalitarian but it is not based on Marx or the idea of a dictatorship of the working class.
But regarding the flow of information, Aramike really has a point and I've often thought about wether this is good or bad.
A recent example is the Kosovo war.
Back in 1999, western information was basically monopolized by CNN and other major news networks. Who controlled them controlled opinion. The golden age of spin doctors.
I've often asked myself if the case for intervention would've stood before a world opinion with the access to news media of today.
The Internet of 1999 was largely a nerd playground compared to today.
There were allready newsgroups and forums, but no blogs, no comment functions, no streaming video....
In the other way round, with the media of 1999, the west would've unanimously supported Georgia in the August war, which might have escalated into real tension between NATO and Russia.
If the 24/7 Sakashvili show on CNN would've been the only source of information for westerners, Georgia might have been a NATO member by now and NATO and Russia on the brink of war.
But I suppose the current freedom of information won't last that long. You can spin the web as well, they're just figuring that out....
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Last edited by AntEater; 12-20-08 at 09:55 PM.
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