“Evil Men Have No Songs”
Says Nietzsche, correctly. And adds: “How is it that the Russians have songs?” That’s because the Russians aren’t evil. Slaves, sure. Evil, no.
See also: Economic Freedom of the World.
Says Nietzsche, correctly. And adds: “How is it that the Russians have songs?” That’s because the Russians aren’t evil. Slaves, sure. Evil, no.
See also: Economic Freedom of the World.
July 16th, 2008 at 6:22 am
The Russians “not” evil… just because they have “songs”?
Apart from the non sequitur, how about asking the opinion of the Lithuanias, Latvians, Estonians, Ukrainians, Moldovans, Georgians, Chechens, Ingush, Yushchenko, Politkovskaya, Litvinenko, etc… and let’s not forget other former inmates of the lager like the Poles, Czechs, Slovaks, Bulgarians, Hungarians, etc. Let’s also, per Chesterton’s fine notion of the “democracy of the dead,” canvas the opinion of the victims of Russian nationalism for the past, oh, two centuries who are now on the other side of glory. How about all ethnic groups that have “experienced” (put mildly) linguistic and cultural ethnocide at the hands of the “benevolent” big brother? How about the virulent hatred of any faith other than Muscovite orthodoxy? How about the continued picking on countries in the “near abroad” who just want to be left alone? Your characterization is, at best, strained by selective inattention, false at worst (most likely). Perhaps one should ask whether the economic slavery in which typical Russians find themselves is, in fact, a strong function of their xenophobia and hatred and self-imposed fear…
I know: I’m an American whose beein living in Ukraine for more than 14 years and has traveled all over the former EVIL empire… and Asmus is spot-on: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/07/14/AR2008071401845.html
July 16th, 2008 at 9:14 am
Nietzsche’s argument appears to be: “if evil, then no songs.” But the Russians have songs. Hence they are not evil. Which seems to be a puzzle for him.
I think Russia would benefit from massive decentralization: they should split the country into a hundred or so sovereign political units.