I like Tom Holland, but thought 'Dominion' explained too much in the sense that it brings every idea and development back to Christianity, without any allowance for new ideas.
Unless you are a believer then I would ask why not go back further to earlier beliefs that Christianity itself stems from?
We revert to tribalism more now than in the recent past. Perhaps our press and our leaders are at fault. Tribalism can revert to violence, hope that is avoided. So many now seem anti-Israel when Gaza promotes that hatred of the Jew. Not clear if that can be overcome if it is taught in schools.
You did go back to it, but I was all set to ask, "Do you want an answer to your early question about Russia? You have at least part of it already, because in order to *get* to Kiev from Mongolia... the Mongols went through Russia. They have never gotten over it. Likewise, when Napoleon and Hitler invaded Russia, they came through Ukraine. Us violating an explicit agreement to not do so, and even motioning towards inviting Ukraine to NATO is going to be seen as an intolerable threat to Russia, by the Russians."
It also doesn't help that when they pitched off the yoke of Communism, and we *could* have stretched out a helping hand to get them going, much the way we did for Germany and Japan following WWII, we instead plundered the hell out of them and helped set up the horrible oligarchy they live under now for our own material gain at their expense. Likewise, if we'd done the George W. Bush thing and declared "Mission Accomplished" and handed NATO over to the Europeans to run on their own, without us, Russia would undoubtedly had far less concern about Ukraine potentially becoming a part of it.
None of which is to make excuses for their acts in the last 21 or so months, but as people seem fond of saying these days, "it didn't happen in a vacuum".
I appreciate your point about Russia's 13th century, Mongol heritage... or experience.
I myself puzzle over deeply lagged variables. The Mongol thesis seems (to me) to be: (1) Russia inherited a feudal tradition from the Mongols. That included a hierarchy with the khan at the top supported by his boyars. Like the Pope, the Khan is always right; it is up to Boyars to bear the consequences of perceived mistakes; (2) Putin is like the Czar is like the Khan; the oligarchs comprise the class of boyars.; (3) This feudal hierarchy has persisted, because there has been demand for just such hierarchy to anticipate and prevent just such catastrophes as the Mongol invasion.
All of that makes for an ambitious narrative, ... but I don't know of any good, competing narratives. But, such a narrative appears to be difficult for everyone east of Elbe to appreciate. So, they look at Russia and see it's policies not so much as defensive but as affirmatively offensive and expansionary.
I'd put the Mongol thesis more as "They got invaded, and they keep *getting* invaded, and they'd really like that to stop." Likewise, one only needs to look at the US reaction to the Cuban Missile Crisis, or contemplate what our reaction would be if Russia invited Canada and Mexico to join a rejuvenated Warsaw Pact. I understand why the former Warsaw Pact nations want to join the EU and NATO, but man, I can also see why it raises Russia's hackles. Particularly since they asked to join NATO themselves, post-Soviet Era, and were turned down.
We have some data on that, don't we?! The Germans' desperate ploy did not work out. ("The Zimmerman Telegram"). And, of course, "the Cuban Missile Crisis."
I like Tom Holland, but thought 'Dominion' explained too much in the sense that it brings every idea and development back to Christianity, without any allowance for new ideas.
Unless you are a believer then I would ask why not go back further to earlier beliefs that Christianity itself stems from?
We revert to tribalism more now than in the recent past. Perhaps our press and our leaders are at fault. Tribalism can revert to violence, hope that is avoided. So many now seem anti-Israel when Gaza promotes that hatred of the Jew. Not clear if that can be overcome if it is taught in schools.
You did go back to it, but I was all set to ask, "Do you want an answer to your early question about Russia? You have at least part of it already, because in order to *get* to Kiev from Mongolia... the Mongols went through Russia. They have never gotten over it. Likewise, when Napoleon and Hitler invaded Russia, they came through Ukraine. Us violating an explicit agreement to not do so, and even motioning towards inviting Ukraine to NATO is going to be seen as an intolerable threat to Russia, by the Russians."
It also doesn't help that when they pitched off the yoke of Communism, and we *could* have stretched out a helping hand to get them going, much the way we did for Germany and Japan following WWII, we instead plundered the hell out of them and helped set up the horrible oligarchy they live under now for our own material gain at their expense. Likewise, if we'd done the George W. Bush thing and declared "Mission Accomplished" and handed NATO over to the Europeans to run on their own, without us, Russia would undoubtedly had far less concern about Ukraine potentially becoming a part of it.
None of which is to make excuses for their acts in the last 21 or so months, but as people seem fond of saying these days, "it didn't happen in a vacuum".
I appreciate your point about Russia's 13th century, Mongol heritage... or experience.
I myself puzzle over deeply lagged variables. The Mongol thesis seems (to me) to be: (1) Russia inherited a feudal tradition from the Mongols. That included a hierarchy with the khan at the top supported by his boyars. Like the Pope, the Khan is always right; it is up to Boyars to bear the consequences of perceived mistakes; (2) Putin is like the Czar is like the Khan; the oligarchs comprise the class of boyars.; (3) This feudal hierarchy has persisted, because there has been demand for just such hierarchy to anticipate and prevent just such catastrophes as the Mongol invasion.
All of that makes for an ambitious narrative, ... but I don't know of any good, competing narratives. But, such a narrative appears to be difficult for everyone east of Elbe to appreciate. So, they look at Russia and see it's policies not so much as defensive but as affirmatively offensive and expansionary.
I'd put the Mongol thesis more as "They got invaded, and they keep *getting* invaded, and they'd really like that to stop." Likewise, one only needs to look at the US reaction to the Cuban Missile Crisis, or contemplate what our reaction would be if Russia invited Canada and Mexico to join a rejuvenated Warsaw Pact. I understand why the former Warsaw Pact nations want to join the EU and NATO, but man, I can also see why it raises Russia's hackles. Particularly since they asked to join NATO themselves, post-Soviet Era, and were turned down.
We have some data on that, don't we?! The Germans' desperate ploy did not work out. ("The Zimmerman Telegram"). And, of course, "the Cuban Missile Crisis."