Ricochet is the best place on the internet to discuss the issues of the day, either through commenting on posts or writing your own for our active and dynamic community in a fully moderated environment. In addition, the Ricochet Audio Network offers over 50 original podcasts with new episodes released every day.
Today’s podcast discusses the geopolitical impact of Russia’s harassment of an unmanned American drone, what this suggests about Ron DeSantis and his foreign-policy views, and the assault on free speech and simple good manners at Stanford Law School. Give a listen.
Subscribe to The Commentary Magazine Podcast in Apple Podcasts (and leave a 5-star review, please!), or by RSS feed. For all our podcasts in one place, subscribe to the Ricochet Audio Network Superfeed in Apple Podcasts or by RSS feed.
The apologia is that the US should be working to make Russia an ally, not an enemy. The republican working class has a natural affinity for the working class of Russia. Both groups are being undeservedly targeted by the woke elite.
May as well try and make an ally of a rabid badger as Putin’s Russia.
And no, there is no natural affinity going on. What we have is a small but vocal segment of so-called “working class,” many of whom seem to spend way too much time online to really be considered “working” at all, being sold a bill of goods by populist demagogues online and on TV trying to make a buck off them.
Is seems a growing number of people on the right sound like Pacifica Radio.
What is the evidence of Russia as a rabid badger? Seizing of Crimea? Where are the Crimean expats or dissidents making the case for return of the territory to UKR? Russia is in Ukraine because it sees that country and all of Eastern Europe in existential danger of losing its sovereignty and culture to the woke West. ( evidence for this view is the continued strong support of Putin in Russia. )
Regarding the republican working class, back when they were allowed to attend a public protest they were shouting that they would not be replaced. Which was spot on political analysis as that is exactly what the establishment is systematically working to do. ( NY Times article today says median rent in Brooklyn is $3400. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/14/nyregion/housing-market-nyc-chi-osse.html#:~:text=The%20median%20monthly%20rent%20for,almost%20%243%2C100%20in%20February%202020. )
Despite the racial undertones of “we will not be replaced” the non racial interpretation of that has legs.
I think claiming that the “online conservatives” are the issue is pathetic and disingenuous. You can’t even show up to a school board meeting without being deemed a potential terrorist.
So exactly where else do you want people to join the political conversation? Even non tiki torch holding, non racist protests from the right are not tolerated. Couple that with most conservatives having more interesting things to do with their time that walk around yelling at people…
@williamdean
Where exactly in the media or other platforms are conservatives invited to? Where would you like this “small but vocal segment” to be?
These people you seem to be frustrated with are most likely being improperly classified as “working class”.
I’ll agree that this group is being spoken to primarily by the more populous left and right; BUT that doesn’t make them populist by definition… What is really going on is people objecting to the neocon/democrat/establishment vision of the world. They are not just working class. This group of people you are so frustrated with are better defined as: “people who are not the beneficiaries of and/or are negatively effected by neocon/establishment local and geo policy”
Here is an idea: would John, Abe, Christine and Matthew Continetti invite @lucretia and @stevenhayward on for an extended discussion about UKR and the state of things? Those two cannot be said to lack intelligence as Matthew was casting conservatives he disagrees with. They are two serious academics, they have the titles.
Bring those two into the light and show the world and this “small but vocal segment” what frauds they are if you think you have a better more “Inteeeeeeellectual” argument.
I support the effort to help Ukraine, and believe that, like a blind pig occasionally stumbling over an acorn, Biden has mostly gotten it right so far. While I disagree with them, I respect the opinion of those who fear interminable quagmire and eventual US “boots on the ground.” But I also think for many on the right, the sole reason they oppose the Ukraine effort is that Biden is for it. If, as John said, Trump woke up tomorrow and decided Ukraine must be supported and Russia defeated, you would see a large chunk of the right instantly start saying, “Ukraine must be supported and Russia defeated.”
Couldn’t disagree more with the soul reason being because Biden supports it.
All those power terms like globalism, deep state and the likes are more behind it.
You’re lack of sophistication is showing when you make the argument that anyone who disagrees with you must takes their marching orders from Trump. Furthermore, Trump hasn’t come out with anything against the war… In fact the only thing he is saying is “if I was president it wouldn’t have happened” and “I’m such an amazing negotiator, I’ll make a peace plan”.
Assuming you are familiar with Trump’s plan:
Are you taking the position that there shouldn’t be peace?
The last part of Trump’s take is that if he cannot negotiate peace, he would continue as we are now…
So how exactly is his plan much further off from Biden’s? Of course beyond Trump poking him with “wouldn’t have happened under me” type rhetoric…
Last line of questioning, the important one, if we can agree that my explanation of Trump’s position on Ukraine is closer to Biden than you made it out to be, would you concede that your point: “Trump woke up tomorrow and decided Ukraine must be supported and Russia defeated, you would see a large chunk of the right instantly start saying, “Ukraine must be supported and Russia defeated.”” is not correct? That maybe the arguments against funding the Ukraine war (valid or not), do not stem from what Trump says and that their might be some more fundamental less superficial reasons people don’t support it?
Russia controlled UKR throughout the post WWII period. Were the people abused or mistreated by Russia? Not that I know of. In fact, the people of UKR, both east and west, and Russia seemed on equal footing in terms of funding of industry, establishment of schools, civil rights ( or the lack there of ). Not to discount the desire and right of a people to have their own country, but is it so terrible to have Russia working to control the government of UKR?
Yes, Ukraine has a crazy Ivan neighbor. Is it worth the terrible death and destruction in the country to stand and fight now? I am very suspicious that outside actors are pushing this fight for their own purposes.
First you have to explain when it is that democrat types in government do anything that is for the greater good. Allowing Antifa to run rampant? Deciding on a mass scale to not arrest and punish criminals? Doing nothing as thousands of young people die from fentanyl? Yeah, if democrats want to stoke a deadly war despite the lack of any kind of path to victory, then I am certainly doubtful that they are doing that for good reasons.
Ethnic Ukrainians were in fact abused pretty badly under Soviet Russia. I’d do a quick search on the Holodomor, man made famine by Russia that was devastating to large parts of Ukraine. I think you may have more of an argument for Eastern Ukraine where people don’t seem to mind Russian gov control.
I agree. Despite your argument leaving out things like the Holodomor, I think there are many ulterior motives pushing this war.
PS, I’m not attacking your end position, that is to be against the Ukrainian war. I’m just trying to make sure we are using the best sets of facts and philosophical reasons to make that argument.
post WWII. Especially post Stalin. Russia, USSR, Ukraine – all the same in terms of the people not being abused, everyone having equal access to education, industrial development. John Derbyshire has said repeatedly on his weekly podcast that Russia and Ukraine are the two most corrupt white countries in the world. Kind of like they have a lot in common and understand each other. Criminal actually for the US to be sending lethal weapons and money into a conflict that desperately needs a political and negotiated solution.
The page for the Commentary podcast is out of date– it says “Hosted by Abe Greenwald, Christine Rosen, John Podhoretz & Noah Rothman“
Well you cannot just pick up Ukrainian/Russian history after Stalin/USSR…. These people have a history they still remember going back a thousand years… Being revisionist is not helpful for your other, correct, observations that both are corrupt and so on.
If you were hosting the political negotiated solutions and said some nonsense like they are all equal historically you’d be laughed out of the room as they continue fighting…
Cut it out. I am making the case that even if Russia occupies and installs a puppet government in UKR there is no evidence there will be mistreatment of the people. Yes, political opponents will disappear. But what with an independent UKR being run by oligarchs, political infighting will be deadly no matter who controls the country.