Home town of Lenin seeks new name. Confusion of post-Marxism not helped by hectoring West. Make the Vatican pay compensation from worldwide wealth, no get out. Linda Casey on All Things Considered covers Fairbanks, Alaska abuse by priests. Loners have fewer rights than their future victims. United Nations not perfect after all. Where does human endurance through centuries, decades or years of cruel misrule, all come from?
04h38-BST Wednesday 23 April 2008-CE
Russian Federation is debating whether the name of the home town of Lenin should change its name. That is all I know. I caught the end bit of the piece on Russia Today channel and I have not seen a repeat since. It is nice that normal trivial issues like that are available for cover, as well as the big issues of how to spend the oil money. But it is mad that the West condemns Russia for prioritising stability. It gives democracy a safe nursery in which to grow.
In 1992, I found it truly unexpected, startling, and odd but real, when Russia came out, seemingly so easily, of the Marxist-fascist horror of seventy years. It must have had the same bemusing effect on people when Russia fell INTO it. A small group of intellectuals with a well-intentioned political blueprint for a workers’ paradise rode the war-ruin and grabbed power, then got taken over by violent criminals no better than the imperial gangsters.
Now the best of the Russian entity can grow. The mega-mistakes of the USSR in the economy, and the vile atrocities of the thought-control thugs, coexisted, not peacefully, but somewhat successfully, with the genius of its scientists such as Konstantine Korolyev. Now that Russian Federation came stumbling out of the mess and, after a very bad decade of oligarchy, got on its feet and is fighting to be free of corruption, we have an important drama, not a sad sitcom, to watch.
China is pretty much is a similar situation. Germany and Japan trod the same weird road 50 years ago. For us British, it was a fairly steady journey out of the nightmare of rule by the Church of Rome when Earth was flat or you got fried. USA, our kid, did a great job of setting up house and making a good living. The fact that dreams did come true in our English-speaking case, gives confidence that, certain gentlemen being sorted, it can happen for all.
The Pope bewails the going bankrupt of several North American dioceses that have to pay out compensation to victims of priest perverts. And his point IS? And the problem IS? There is NO problem. The C of R worldwide has sucked wealth unto itself for the best part of 20 centuries. Let it pay, let it pay, let it pay. We all know nice, normal people who happen to be brought up as RC. THEY are our friends. Popes, cardinals, bishops & priests are not.
Linda Casey in All Things Considered on npr covered the Fairbanks, Alaska case of priestly abuse of children, especially boys. John Lockwood was 8 when he was attacked. His father used to send him off to church every Sunday. The kid used to hide under a house until it was time to go home. It is necessary for society to understand how a new-born baby boy can grow up to be an abuser, in order to prevent it. See ‘Boys to Beasts’ in my sidebar.
Books such as ‘The Banana Boys’ and ‘Soldier Erect’ brought discussability to the subject of masturbation. But it is treated as a joke. What is not discussed is the negative effect as a loner is left with his fantasies (gradually getting more extreme and violent) when he needs to be creatively drawn out into sociability. Prevention of sex-maniac-crime requires social intervention in the private lives of juvenile introverts. Ye that have ears to hear…
I must be 100% naive. Or at least I used to be. I never anticipated that the United Nations armed forces for enforcement of peace, order and justice could or would be guilty of corruption, atrocity and abuse. This was what the bad guys did. The UN were the good guys. BBC World Service reported the situation in Africa. UN rule was to be the panacea! As to the question of how people endure suffering, I never had any so I cannot tell you.
FIN 06h03
24 April 2008 at 6:31
The revisionist history of the Russian bourgeoisie will not keep them from hoisting themselves by their own petard and bringing about the conditions for a new October Revolution.
24 April 2008 at 12:51
Hi Jonesy
I thank you for your comment.
A new October Revolution would be very welcome IF the Bolsheviks were good guys this time around, rather than self-seeking, moronic criminals. Since that is too much to expect, I rely upon the quasi-Western system in Russian Federation to evolve a prosperous modern society with justice and equal opportunity for all, for the first time in the history of those cold northern lands.
Putin and Medvedev do not intend to duplicate the Western model entirely. I am glad. We are far too soft. But when the development of new Russia has gotten to the point where EU and NATO would welcome it in (Mafia and plutocrats under control) that will be the moment when EU and Nato might be wanting in to Russian Federation!
Cheers, Cy