If the objective is to convince ordinary Russians that the US is indeed their enemy, and to get them in a real fighting mood, this meme should do the trick.
I see it more as a slap against Moscow's "We're the source of all civilization" boast that I've occasionally read, but I'm not looking at the meme from a current-events* propaganda angle. That is, if the meme came from Ukraine and not the US State Dept.
*Current events in that part of the world seem to start with Napoleon and continue through today.
I'm also seeing (after having the basics of it pointed out to me by my wife) a parallel between the perception of Hitler's strategic and tactical genius in the late 30s and a similar perception of Putin today.
Both also were perceived as greater risk-takers/gamblers than their...opposition.
The cracks didn't begin to appear in the perception of Hitler until he lost his nerve on the invasion of France and let the Brits escape with a considerable army, but the blinders didn't fall away completely until the debacle of his invasion of Russia. It's still early days with Putin.
One thing about the risk-taking/gambling, though. In many forms of gambling--poker and war, for instance--the matter is much less about playing the odds and much more about reading the players. So far, it hasn't been shown that Putin has much more than fish at the table.
3 comments:
If the objective is to convince ordinary Russians that the US is indeed their enemy, and to get them in a real fighting mood, this meme should do the trick.
I see it more as a slap against Moscow's "We're the source of all civilization" boast that I've occasionally read, but I'm not looking at the meme from a current-events* propaganda angle. That is, if the meme came from Ukraine and not the US State Dept.
*Current events in that part of the world seem to start with Napoleon and continue through today.
LittleRed1
I'm also seeing (after having the basics of it pointed out to me by my wife) a parallel between the perception of Hitler's strategic and tactical genius in the late 30s and a similar perception of Putin today.
Both also were perceived as greater risk-takers/gamblers than their...opposition.
The cracks didn't begin to appear in the perception of Hitler until he lost his nerve on the invasion of France and let the Brits escape with a considerable army, but the blinders didn't fall away completely until the debacle of his invasion of Russia. It's still early days with Putin.
One thing about the risk-taking/gambling, though. In many forms of gambling--poker and war, for instance--the matter is much less about playing the odds and much more about reading the players. So far, it hasn't been shown that Putin has much more than fish at the table.
Eric Hines
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