Something’s been bothering me for quite some time. By disposition, I am instinctively wary of conspicuous displays of irrationality, of situations in which society and its institutions begin to zealously believe things with little or no evidence. Watching people work themselves into a frenzy without facts or legitimate justification is a disturbing thing to behold.
The outbreak of irrationality that most interests me now is the tornado of Putin-hatred, the torrent of bile that is being directed at all things Russian. Although public irrationality is concerning in and of itself, the fact that this particular irrationality has nuclear implications makes it all the more so.
The media. The neocons. The Democratic party. A significant portion of the general public. They have gone into a frenzy the likes of which I’ve rarely seen. And it’s not just since the unexpected election of Donald Trump. This hatred has been boiling for years.
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But why?
I’ve spent a lot of time pondering the cause, and, for the life of me, I can’t figure it out.
As Sherlock Holmes was wont to do, it is a useful exercise to examine what is clearly NOT the cause, to rule out the various proposed reasons behind the hatred, and see what’s left.
So what are the reasons being given for this pathological hatred? What is offending our elites so badly that they are willing to risk World War III?
Here is the short list I’ve been able to unearth:
- Putin is a dictator.
While it is true that Russia’s democracy is not squeaky clean, what democratic system is? (Check out the elections in Chicago sometime. They make Russia look like Mayberry). But even given the corruption, the polls I’ve seen indicate that Putin is enormously popular and…