Comments by "LancesArmorStriking" (@LancesArmorStriking) on "How Russia is changing Baltic Sea borders" video.
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Your view of Russia is honestly delusional. On all counts.
For one, its vulnerability is also an asset— nobody thus far (besides the Mongols) successfully occupied all of Russia with brute force. Any invading army would get stretched to breaking, whether by land or air.
Secondly— Russia TRIED to become a second power, a large force within the sphere of Europe.
Right after the USSR, Yeltsin showed almost comical eagerness to play along with the US geopolitically.
How was this kindness repaid? By sending US Treasury employees to Moscow to liberalize its economy and completely destroy any quality of life from the USSR. That meant hyperinflation, collapse of institutions, and a complete selloff of state assets.
Before you say that it was inevitable, Poland was put under the same 'transition' program, but was given different parameters which conspicuously led to stabilization and enrichment. Why did they insist that Russia privatize EVERYTHING, when Poland had been allowed to keep its courts and state-run companies intact just a few years earlier?
It was malice. Kicking the enemy while he was down.
Russia learned a difficult but valuable lesson: America is an ill-intentioned country.
Acting "normally" by abiding by the rules doesn't work when they're actively trying to make your standing in the world worse— that means domestically, too.
Had the USSR not spread communism, the US would still have tried to sabotage it, because it simply doesn't like peer competitors in any area.
Lastly— Putin inherited a shithole from Yeltsin. Go watch old videos of the breadlines and empty grocery stores that resulted from capitalism entering Russia.
Or just ask any Russian over 40. They'll gladly tell you what life was like under "Gorby" and his drunken successor.
You might not like his authoritarianism, but he inarguably improved the quality of life within Russia. If that makes you mad, ask yourself why.
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