Thread by @irgarner

Thread: While you were laughing at Putin for his JK Rowling schtick yesterday, he wasn't trolling you or trying to distract us with cancel culture arguments. He was laying out visions of a West trying to destroy history & Russia itself.

Here's what he said - and why it matters:

First, the context: Putin was speaking to the winners of the year’s Presidential Young Artists award. These sorts of awards are huge in Russia – I studied music at the Petersburg Conservatory, and winning this sort of thing was a big deal. Everybody wanted to win these things.

That’s important. In the speech, which was quite lengthy, Putin was addressing eager young Russian minds - the nation's next musical and artistic stars - not talking to the West.

Putin began by describing Russia as “multinational.” But he immediately went on to praise the “generations” of Russian artists who’ve created a “uniquely Russian” cultural tradition. So no room there for the 20% of the population who are not ethnic Russians.

Putin claimed Russian culture has always been about the “internal world” of the individual: “We feel with acuity injustice and others’ pain…and we go to the aid of those who are in true need of our help.” (Brutal, right?)

“Patriotic culture,” says Putin, “has always defended Russia’s uniqueness.” Culture, he says, “is keeping the Russian nation safe today…when seemingly age-old norms are being undermined in various countries, where history is distorted & the laws of nature are being smashed.”

He then rails against Hollywood films that depict the US as the victor over Nazism in WW2 (an old favourite) and complains that, even in Japan, nobody ever shows who dropped the atomic bombs (utter tripe, of course).

That leads him into Rowling: he’s talking to young people who might be keen Harry Potter fans, and telling them that the West is ready to destroy the things that they love; he’s wrapping the destruction of “innocent” culture into the destruction of Russia itself.

So all the Rowling stuff is in line with the approach Putin has been taking for the last week or two: Russia is under attack at home and abroad; only culture, commerce, and mindset that are sufficiently patriotic and Russian nature can save you.

All the social media reaction yesterday - "He's trying to distract us by bringing up Rowling so we argue while he does bad things!!" - was bunkum. If there's one thing you need to learn from the last month, it's this: take Putin at his word. When he says something, he means it.