I don’t think that “wearing the skin of the civilisation they have killed” is the best metaphor for what the woke are doing to the West. In that image, only the outer appearance of the former person remains, while the strength and capabilities are those of the person who killed him.
A better metaphor for wokeness would be parasitic infection. This infection does not immediately kill or even weaken its host, but it affects the host’s mind, altering its behavior to serve the goals of the parasite. Toxoplasma gondii does not simply paralyze or kill the mice that it infects. On the contrary, it temporarily increases their powers, in a sense, by removing their fear. But their new boldness does not help the mice survive and reproduce. It leads them to be eaten by cats, in which T. gondii reproduces.
Like infected mice, the brave Ukrainian soldiers and smart Raytheon engineers have not been weakened so much as subverted. They retain all of their abilities, for now, but those abilities have been redirected towards goals that will advance wokeness and destroy them.
Since the missiles began falling, the favored woke categories have not featured prominently at the front lines. We’ve seen many viral photos of armed women in combat fatigues, but little evidence that they’re doing much of the shooting. The ‘new Ukrainians’ from India and Africa fled immediately, some complaining of racism and ridiculing the idea that they might stay and fight. Millions of women and children left, while the native-born men stayed. FtM transgenders dug out their old nail polish at the border. Not exactly fodder for a Netflix show.
If the Ukrainians win this war, the most probable outcome will be their full integration into NATO, the EU, and the cultural West. That will result in their cultural degradation and, eventually, their physical elimination as a group due to mass immigration.
The new ‘oikophobia’ of the Right is hatred of the parasite, not of the host it has infected and will destroy.
Putin, for his many flaws and petty tyranny and astonishing willingness and evil in starting an unprovoked war, does have one aspect that is worth noticing, and it's his staunch support for the concept of a strong Russia. Nationalistic? Patriotic? When I lived in Dubai I had several Russian friends and even back in those days (circa 2010-2016) Putin was already a budding persona non grata in the West and issues like the suppression of gay rights would periodically surface in Western media. The Russians I knew were enlightened people by the standards of Russia and while they decried the crackdown on gay rights, at the same time they openly respected Putin because "he made Russia feel strong and important again." And that's remarkably telling. If you're, say, 40, you would have been born in 1980s Russia, which was still a recognizable power and force in the world, only to see the sheer deprivation and embarrassment of the 1990s collapse, which must have been utterly demoralizing. Under Putin, Russia did regain some of her old sense of prestige and power (sort of), and, yes, greater prosperity. The Russians don't forget that either.
There's certainly an element of attraction to the strongman who proclaims to defend the traditions and history of your culture, no matter how attracted you may be to a more modern or even progressive environment. I saw this sentiment all over the Middle East, for example. The progressive Arabs always still retained respect for people who defended the old ways of doing things, aka their history and lineage.
The Western woke progressives are unique in that they don't cherish the history of the west and have little interest in defending the "old ways" and respecting the old histories and myths and creeds. It's not surprising to see the conservatives increasingly angry at the progressives, and when the progressives are in power, hostile to the institutions and governments controlled by the progressives. They've lost any meaningful ownership or stake in their own societies and must feel adrift. I can see why some of them would find a strongman like Putin impressive and admirable.
Interesting but you should look at Oliver Stone’s Fire over Ukraine film on Bitchute for some background on Eastern Europe. I realise that he will be dismissed as a mere oikophobe but surely some criticism of one’s own ‘side’ is permissible - except when we get caught up in the current war fever and militarism I suppose, in which case anyone stepping out of the narrative of MI6 and other elites can be waived aside on the grounds of oikophobia. Let’s all get out our Union Jacks and Bandera Ukrainian flags, Brits, hooray!
I will confess that in the build-up to the conflict, I found myself sympathizing a bit too much with Bill Haydon from Tinker Tailor. "Don't you see, George? The West has become so decadent.... It was an aesthetic judgment as much as anything...."
I don’t think that “wearing the skin of the civilisation they have killed” is the best metaphor for what the woke are doing to the West. In that image, only the outer appearance of the former person remains, while the strength and capabilities are those of the person who killed him.
A better metaphor for wokeness would be parasitic infection. This infection does not immediately kill or even weaken its host, but it affects the host’s mind, altering its behavior to serve the goals of the parasite. Toxoplasma gondii does not simply paralyze or kill the mice that it infects. On the contrary, it temporarily increases their powers, in a sense, by removing their fear. But their new boldness does not help the mice survive and reproduce. It leads them to be eaten by cats, in which T. gondii reproduces.
Like infected mice, the brave Ukrainian soldiers and smart Raytheon engineers have not been weakened so much as subverted. They retain all of their abilities, for now, but those abilities have been redirected towards goals that will advance wokeness and destroy them.
Since the missiles began falling, the favored woke categories have not featured prominently at the front lines. We’ve seen many viral photos of armed women in combat fatigues, but little evidence that they’re doing much of the shooting. The ‘new Ukrainians’ from India and Africa fled immediately, some complaining of racism and ridiculing the idea that they might stay and fight. Millions of women and children left, while the native-born men stayed. FtM transgenders dug out their old nail polish at the border. Not exactly fodder for a Netflix show.
If the Ukrainians win this war, the most probable outcome will be their full integration into NATO, the EU, and the cultural West. That will result in their cultural degradation and, eventually, their physical elimination as a group due to mass immigration.
The new ‘oikophobia’ of the Right is hatred of the parasite, not of the host it has infected and will destroy.
Putin, for his many flaws and petty tyranny and astonishing willingness and evil in starting an unprovoked war, does have one aspect that is worth noticing, and it's his staunch support for the concept of a strong Russia. Nationalistic? Patriotic? When I lived in Dubai I had several Russian friends and even back in those days (circa 2010-2016) Putin was already a budding persona non grata in the West and issues like the suppression of gay rights would periodically surface in Western media. The Russians I knew were enlightened people by the standards of Russia and while they decried the crackdown on gay rights, at the same time they openly respected Putin because "he made Russia feel strong and important again." And that's remarkably telling. If you're, say, 40, you would have been born in 1980s Russia, which was still a recognizable power and force in the world, only to see the sheer deprivation and embarrassment of the 1990s collapse, which must have been utterly demoralizing. Under Putin, Russia did regain some of her old sense of prestige and power (sort of), and, yes, greater prosperity. The Russians don't forget that either.
There's certainly an element of attraction to the strongman who proclaims to defend the traditions and history of your culture, no matter how attracted you may be to a more modern or even progressive environment. I saw this sentiment all over the Middle East, for example. The progressive Arabs always still retained respect for people who defended the old ways of doing things, aka their history and lineage.
The Western woke progressives are unique in that they don't cherish the history of the west and have little interest in defending the "old ways" and respecting the old histories and myths and creeds. It's not surprising to see the conservatives increasingly angry at the progressives, and when the progressives are in power, hostile to the institutions and governments controlled by the progressives. They've lost any meaningful ownership or stake in their own societies and must feel adrift. I can see why some of them would find a strongman like Putin impressive and admirable.
Interesting but you should look at Oliver Stone’s Fire over Ukraine film on Bitchute for some background on Eastern Europe. I realise that he will be dismissed as a mere oikophobe but surely some criticism of one’s own ‘side’ is permissible - except when we get caught up in the current war fever and militarism I suppose, in which case anyone stepping out of the narrative of MI6 and other elites can be waived aside on the grounds of oikophobia. Let’s all get out our Union Jacks and Bandera Ukrainian flags, Brits, hooray!
Keep in mind that those who actually fight America's wars are the children of, and often themselves are, "DEPLORABLES" in the Hillary Clinton sense.
I will confess that in the build-up to the conflict, I found myself sympathizing a bit too much with Bill Haydon from Tinker Tailor. "Don't you see, George? The West has become so decadent.... It was an aesthetic judgment as much as anything...."