Those who recall the “Russian troops massing” meme which was so ubiquitous toward the end of 2014 and well into 2015 will have quite a feeling of deja vu right now. For months back then this same turn of phrase was repeated endlessly by people who had no special knowledge and who had seen nothing of the sort for themselves. In those days at least an odd one or two intrepid reporters from the West did venture east to have a look. One such expedition featuring two journos from NBC made the trip. And lo and behold they had the Devil’s own job of finding any Russian troops there at all.
Presently Russia has troops and vehicles positioned some 130 to 180 kilometres from the Russian-Ukraine border. There is a very good reason why they are there and if they were not there the consequences for the people of Donetsk and Lugansk would be dire. They are there to respond in force to any attempt to take the two breakaway republics by a blitzkrieg military campaign. This is the one and only reason they are there. It is not Russia that has been using belligerent rhetoric in the last weeks and months, it is Ukraine and specifically the regime in Kiev. It would be hard to find a more aggressive bunch of loudmouths in fact.
But western political and media elites have done an excellent job of smashing their “Russian troops massing” meme into the heads of their western citizens once again. That alongside the purposely fear-generating, ever-present (but never realised) Russian invasion of Ukraine. It is reminiscent of old porky Poroshenko’s verbal antics where the number of purported regular Russian troops in Ukraine kept getting ramped up when the shock, horror, probe effect of his words didn’t get his allies to cough up more cash.
Russia has absolutely no incentive to invade Ukraine. There are only downsides to such a reckless idea. To proactively send in a massive military force would be welcomed by a great many but it would only serve to solidify the falsely awarded pariah status of Russia and this time it might not only affect the western world. For this is one of the many ridiculous features of the western propaganda war against Russia. It is a solely U.S. obsession with a little help from its allies, chiefly a vindictive-minded and petty-fogging Britain. The rest of the world finds Russia a perfectly acceptable trading partner and no threat at all.
Western media appears to perceive its readers and viewers as existing within a bubble controlled by themselves and imbibing its b.s. With mindless alacrity. Few occasions exist whereby the man and women on the street get a say, so no one knows just how many in the West find the pisspoor output of western media outlets some kind of veritable champagne of newscasting. I suspect, even granting that it is a captive audience for the completely one-sided news outlets across multiple channels, that many have long since wised up to the no-integrity scam these so-called news entities are running on them.
We may get a chance to see how many retain their faith in western mainstream news media when and if some military conflict does kick off in south-eastern Ukraine. Why? Because no matter what happens you know it will be “Russia to blame”. Western audiences have been groomed interminably with this eventuality in mind. I intently watched almost four years of the conflict in Ukraine and it was the same ploy engaged in by western news media throughout. Any reprehensible action taken by the Ukrainian forces up to and including frontal attacks on civilian infrastructure with civilian lives being lost daily got no mention or at most a word or two in the softest terms imaginable. And never mentioned without a balancing act asserting blame on the rebel side. On the other hand, every opportunity was taken to lambast the rebels and surprise surprise no balancing mention of any corresponding acts by the Ukrainian army.
Whatever happens now it will be framed as Russia’s doing. It doesn’t matter how blatant the actions taken by the Ukrainian army is or how many civilians die. This won’t raise more than the quietest of cheeps from western media if that. More likely the storyline will feature absolutely zero commentary along these lines no matter what atrocities are committed in the name of Kiev and Ukrainian sovereignty. But when Russia responds and Russia is honour-bound to respond then the lines of newsprint and the jabbering of talking heads across CNN, the BBC and their ilk will be one massive chattering chorus of horror at those evil irredeemable Russians who must be dealt the most devastating of punishments for their abominable sins.
Western elites have primed the gun of propaganda. It only waits now for the trigger to be pulled.
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