Thread by @MuKappa

Nazism is mainstream in russia.

What is nazism? Abstract away from the distractions of economics and markets. Nazism is a form of fascism founded on the delusional belief of one group of people, generally based on ethnicity, being superior to another group of people. 1/

So too the russians, who have been absorbed by the culture of their ethnic exceptionalism and historic revisionism promoting their ethnic superiority in all aspects, think that they are more privileged than any other ethnicity or nation. 2/

The russians think that no rules apply to them. They think that they can do whatever they please because they are exceptional.
When the USSR collapsed the new russian government fought very hard to become a successor state to the Soviet Union. 3/

Much like the USSR became a successor state to the original russian empire, the russian federation had to become a successor state to the USSR. Ideologically it was critical to them to preserve imperial continuity of exceptionalism and cultural and historical superiority. 4/

Without the succession, russia would have had become equal to the former colonies, such as Ukraine, Kazakhstan, etc. That was simply unacceptable to the russians. They also maintained their centuries-long militarism, as it all feeds into their russian exceptionalism worldview. 5/

In the 1990s russia was in dire economic straights and it was completely irrational to maintain a huge military and a large nuclear arsenal. But it was culturally and ideologically of an absolute necessity to the russians. Why? It is part of their exceptionalism beliefs. 6/

Long before putin, the war in Transnistria happened. The russians then had no doubt in the necessity to protect ethnic russian "separatists" in Moldova, whom the empire moved there over the years. However, just a few years later they went to war with Chechen separatists. 7/

Transnistria was acceptable, while Chechen separatism, a liberation movement, was unacceptable to the russians. The russians apply no rules to themselves. You see, they think they are special, exceptional, and superior to the rest of the world. 8/

Chechen independence was absolutely repugnant to the russians. Negotiations with the Chechens were absolutely unacceptable for an average russian, until major military defeats and economic strains in 1996. The russians returned in 1999 to put the "savages" in their place. 9/

Any suggestions for Chechen independence from abroad faced an aggressive pushback from the russians. It is all driven by russian exceptionalism deeply rooted in their culture. 10/

For the russians the protectionism of their empire and their imperial ambitions come naturally. They are an organic part of their individual and national psyche. 11/

Over the years, I have witnessed countless times how aggressively the russians react to any attempts at an independent foreign policy by the former colonies. Typically, such attempts are called "ungrateful." 12/

The russians expect their former colonies to be grateful. Grateful for what? In their perverted and revised historical view they did "so much" for the former colonies, they "civilized" them. 13/

When the former colonies do something independently from russia, the russians feel betrayed. “How could they? We did so much for them.” Such russian behavior is axiomatic. They will hold a grudge and retaliate when an opportunity presents itself. 14/

The reality is that the russians demand the former colonies to be grateful for the misery, death, destruction, starvation, and sometimes assimilation. Such is the russian way to “civilize” the “savages.” 15/

The russians also demand the rest of the world to be grateful to them for the victory over Nazi Germany. In their worldview it is the ethnic russians *alone* who defeated German Nazism in 1945. “The Great Patriotic War” became one of the pillars of russian exceptionalism. 16/

Anyone who questions the victory in WW2 the ethnic russians appropriated will face self-righteous anger and a flurry of insults from them. However, it is unclear why the world should be grateful to them: the USSR was allied to Germany till the very first day of Barbarossa. 17/

Should I even mention the brutal russian occupation of Eastern Europe following the end of WW2? The russians expect gratitude for that too.
The russians demand gratitude from the world and from the former colonies, they are special, they are exceptional. 18/

2014 was a point of no return. That year centuries long russian chauvinism regressed into russian nazism. I’ll ignore Crimea. russia manufactured oppression of russian speakers in the Donbas and invaded with “separatists.” That’s just a few years after the Chechen Wars. 19/

Again, russian “separatism” is acceptable, Chechen separatism is unacceptable, because rules do not apply to the russians.
They are exceptional. They allow themselves to do what is unimaginable to them if others do it. That is the essence of russian nazism. 20/

I think there are no “good” or “bad” russians. The distinction is meaningless. There are however sheepishly obedient russians and zealous z-supporters, averaging out into a regular russian nazi. 21/

Germany was zombified by nazi propaganda for 12 years. The russians were on their path to nazism for decades if not centuries. There are no easy fixes. There will be no protests. Changes in the russian government would solve nothing. The road ahead will be long and difficult. 22/

However Nazi Germany was defeated. So too will be the current version of the russian empire. Their nazi worldviews will have to be shattered. The sooner the world realizes it is everyone’s problem, the better.
Ukraine will win as they have no other choice. 23/23