Is Russia Now the Defender of Western Civ?

A provocative question for sparking a discussion

When I was in graduate school I read all of the literature on how European revolutionary doctrine had destabilized Russia in the late 19th century. This process culminated with the Bolsheviks—animated by the crude doctrine of Marxism-Leninism—unleashing hell on the country. The bibliography is vast, and I suspect that few Americans or Englishmen alive today have read many of these books.

When Russian President Vladimir Putin was a young man, he participated in this corrupt system as an intelligence agent stationed in Dresden between 1985 and 1990, where he apparently worked with the Stasi—the German Democratic Republic’s horrible secret police.

However, there are many indications that, at some point after 1991—or perhaps even during his KGB service—he had something akin to a Damascene Moment in which he saw that the secular state religion he served was corrupt.

I have never met Putin and I know nothing about his character. However, according to Aleksandr Gelyevich Dugin, who is said to be Putin’s intellectual and spiritual advisor, Putin has genuinely rejected the Marxism-Leninist doctrine of his youth.

Here it should be noted that the West has always struggled to understand the Russian mind, which Churchill famously described as “a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma.”

Dugin’s Russian brand of conservatism would doubtless strike most people in the West as strange and politically incorrect. I sense that some of this thinking can be traced back to Dostoevsky’s 1871 novel Demons, about young Russian revolutionaries who have been possessed by European secular-socialist ideology.

For all of Russia’s own corruption and problems, the country nevertheless presents a fascinating counterbalance to many of the incredibly stupid, destructive, shallow, and childish cultural and political currents in the West.

One of my best friends is a Russian who, because of his family’s Jewish ancestry, was allowed to leave the Soviet Union in a deal struck between Reagan and Gorbachev. His family settled in Vienna, where he grew up. After studying math at Cambridge, he returned to Moscow, where he lived for a few years and experienced what he described as “the time of my life.” He understood as well as anyone all the country’s problems, but he nevertheless found most Russians to be extremely friendly and funny.

Especially refreshing for him was the conspicuous absence of Cultural Marxism and other doctrines that have poisoned the American and English university systems. He also developed an inordinate fondness for Russian women and—despite the extreme anti-Russian sentiment with which he must now contend in his current home in London—he continues to maintain a great relationship with his Russian girlfriend. Understandably so—she is a lovely and intelligent girl.

I mention this because I was appalled by the recent New York Times report (The Partnership: The Secret History of the War in Ukraine) that the CIA and the U.S. Department of Defense have provided all of the sophisticated weapons and targeting that have enabled the Ukrainian military to kill up to 700,000 Russians.

I believe the totality of circumstances indicates that the U.S. government and the CIA have, since 2014 at the latest, persistently and systematically baited Russia into taking military action against Ukraine to counter the U.S. de facto takeover of the country—a takeover with objectives and activities that are relentlessly hostile to Russia right on its doorstep. An exceptionally educated friend who grew up in Ukraine completely agrees with this assessment.

My own experience in Russia has been limited to visiting St. Petersburg, founded by the Russian Czar Peter the Great in 1703. Vladimir Putin was born in St. Petersburg, and I suspect that at least part of him shares the the Russian’s Czar’s fascination with European culture. His story reminds me of Mausolus, a ruler of what is now western Anatolia (in Turkey) in the Persian Empire between 377-353 B.C. While Mausolus had a reputation for being a stalwart ruler of Persian cultural and political sensibilities, he became deeply involved through military action in Greek affairs. Ultimately he seemed to become a greater lover of Greek culture than most Greeks, especially where art and architecture were concerned.

The Hermitage Museum in Saint Petersburg is full of Western art treasures.

Since 2022, I have frequently told anyone who would listen that the United States should adopt a policy of recognizing that Russia has legitimate economic and security interests. The majority of people with whom I have spoken have accused me of being a “Putin Apologist” or “Putin Stooge” and they have asked me why I would trust Vladimir Putin.

My response has always been, “Why should I trust Joe Biden, Boris Johnson, Emmanuel Macron, and Olaf Scholz?”

Indeed, it seems to me that, since around the year 2008, pretty much everything we’ve heard emanating from Washington D.C., London, Paris, and Berlin is dubious at best, and mostly a lie. Most of the policies implemented by Europe’s elites have been detrimental to the working and middle class citizenry of Europe. Germany’s insane “Green Energy” policies have been a total disaster for its skilled manufacturing sector—until recently the envy of the West—and its insane immigration policies have been a disaster for public safety and the security of German women.

In recent years, the government of Great Britain has repudiated the nation’s long and venerable tradition of free speech. Nowadays the UK is a place in which Big Brother is Watching and severely punishing those who violate the state’s growing restricted speech code. A couple of years ago, British comedian and author, Konstantin Kisin (who was born and raised in Russia and is a strong critic of Vladimir Putin) pointed out that in one recent year, 400 people had been arrested in Russia for things they said on social media. In same year, 3,300 people were in arrested in the UK for things they said on social media. This is, it seems to me, is absolutely shocking.

Yesterday came the news that Marine Le Pen was banned from the next presidential race because of an accounting irregularity. The charges reminded me of similar law-fare tactics the Democrat Party used against Donald Trump.

Since 2020 in the West, we have experienced COVID-19 mRNA vaccine mandates, censorship, and the banning of political opposition.

Considering this, I pose the following provocative question: Could it be that—for all of its faults—the Russian nation is now something like a defender of Western Civilization from the militant barbarians who have taken over the politics and culture of the West?

Before readers respond with comments, I hope they will bear in mind that I am NOT asserting this to be true, I am merely asking the question. It to me that asking provocative questions is the first step to opening up serious thought and inquiry about a complex and difficult subject.