The Annotated Putin

Putin at Valdai Unscripted and decrypted

Here are some takeaways from Putin’s unscripted discussion at Valdai

In the identity documents of subjects of the Russian Empire, there was no line for “Nationality.” It simply was not there. In the Soviet passport it appeared, but in the Russian passport – again, it was not there. And what was there? “Religion.” There was a common value, a religious value, an affiliation with Eastern Christianity – with Orthodoxy, faith. There were other values as well, but this was the defining one: what values do you share?

That is why even today, it makes no difference to us whether a person comes from the East, the West, the South, or the North. If they share our values, they are our people. That is how we see you, and that is why you feel the attitude towards yourself. And that is how I see it as well.

Here you see, the Russian concept of its emergent civilization, quite unlike that of European countries or countries in the Anglosphere – especially the US, which say they leave “values” to the individual – when in fact they are ambivalent about such things. Western cultures are economically financialized – and therefore “values” are spreadsheet values—you assess “values” with a calculator.

The best democracy money can buy

That’s why the Zionists get to buy American acquiescence with the murder of children. And why Trump is always talking about someone paying him.

Individual Americans may have conscience—but without financial agency that is meaningless. It is truly the best democracy you can buy.

When a person wants to become an American, it’s easy when you have a milllion dollars or at least $800,000 to invest.

Not easy when you are poor and brown or black. It doesn’t matter what your beliefs are, or whether you are good or bad, what your values are.

Think of all the Nazis who became American citizens as part of Operation Paper Clip!

That’s not Russia….

Double Standards

Putin also talked about America’s economic double standards.

As for, let us say, uranium – what is it, really? In this case, uranium is a fuel, an energy resource for nuclear power plants. In that sense, it is no different from oil, gas, fuel oil, or coal, because it too is an energy source that generates electricity. What is the difference? None at all. The United States does, in fact, buy uranium from us.

You asked: why does the United States buy it, while, at the same time, trying to prevent others from purchasing our energy resources? The answer is simple, and it was given to us long ago in Latin. We all know the saying: Quod licet Iovi, non licet bovi – what is permitted to Jupiter is not permitted to an ox. That is the essence of it.

He is clear that these double standards are not appreciated globally. No country wants to be humiliated.

But neither China nor India – despite the fact that cow is sacred in India – wants to be the ox here. There are politicians, especially in Europe, who are willing to be an ox, a goat, even a ram. We will not name names, but this certainly does not apply to China, India, or other large, medium, or even small countries that respect themselves and refuse to be humiliated.

Again, this is about values. And even the “Atlanticists” in Russia are beginning to doubt “Atlantic” civilization.

You know, we have a substantial liberal community here in Russia – from creative and intellectual circles. We have many thinkers we call ‘Westernisers,’ who believe Russia’s path should bring it closer to the West.

Yet even these individuals have been telling me: “The Europe we loved no longer exists.” I will not name them now, but believe me, they are well-known figures. They are, in the truest sense of the word, European intellectuals. Some of them spend half the year living over there in Europe, and they all say the same thing: the Europe we so cherished is finished; it is gone.

What do they mean, above all? They are referring to the erosion of those very value benchmarks, that foundational framework. If this erosion continues, then Europe, as I said, risks becoming a fading centre, gradually shrinking and fading. This, in turn, leads to economic problems. And if the current course persists, the situation is unlikely to improve.

Value Sovereignty

He has a new term of new national issues—, which we should pay attention to – “value sovereignty”.

What that means is that each nation has sovereignty, not in terms of its borders and government – but the values of its people.

The US has never accepted this. It insists, with John Locke, that essential truths are self-evident to all men, and this notion is enshrined in the Declaration of Independence as a political statement but American exceptionalism, insists that only Americans can interpret and define these things. Implicit is the Puritan belief that some are Chosen; most are damned.

So when Russia or China or Iran differ in their cultural values and beliefs, they are wrong. In fact, they are on their way to Hell.

America? “We are the World”

Putin says Europe “gone” . Once sovereign values” disappear, a nation’s “ethos” vanishes, and along with it reason and human feeling. The whole social and economic contract is abrogated.

Why is this? Because it results in a loss of value sovereignty. And once that sovereignty is lost, economic troubles inevitably follow. The logic is clear, is it not? Consider our discussion on uranium – an energy carrier, in fact – which Russia continues to export to the United States, while gas and oil supplies to Europe are blocked. Why, when it is economically efficient? The answer is sanctions, driven by political ideas. What ideas? Dozens of them, which inevitably arise when you shift focus away from your national interests. But if you remain focused on national interests and sovereignty, there is no rational reason to reject such trade. Once sovereignty is lost, everything else begins to crumble.

For Putin, the only answer is a new Global Governance – polycentric, multipolar, with respect for values sovereignty.

Gaza —a “final” solution?

On Gaza, Putin’s opinion was carefully crafted to be positive to all parties, Surprisingly, he doesn’t object to Tony Blair. He knows exactly that kind of person Blair is. This is an indication that he knows that Trump’s initiative is doomed from the start. Getting the hostages back will likely encourage the Israelis to restart war with Iran which they - -and the Americans — will lose.

The situation in Gaza is one of the most tragic events in recent history. It is also well known that the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has publicly admitted – and he often reflects Western views – that Gaza has become the largest children’s cemetery in the world. What could be more tragic? What could be more painful?

Now, regarding President Trump’s proposal on Gaza – you may find this surprising, but Russia is overall ready to support it. Provided, of course, that it truly leads to the ultimate goal we have always spoken about. We must thoroughly examine the proposals made.

Since 1948 – and later in 1974, when the relevant UN Security Council resolution was adopted – Russia has consistently supported the creation of two states: Israel and a Palestinian state. I believe this is the only key to a final, lasting solution to the Palestinian–Israeli conflict.

As far as I understand – I have not looked through the proposal carefully yet – it suggests creating an international administration to govern Palestine for some time, or more precisely, the Gaza Strip. It is proposed that Mr Blair would head it. Now, he is not known as a great peacemaker. But I know him personally. I have even visited him at his home, spent the night there, and in the morning, over coffee in our pyjamas, we spoke at length. Yes, this is true.

Putin’s spin is that Blair is an “experienced politician” —aka an unscrupulous. and manipulative personality.

Fyodor Lukyanov: Was the coffee good?

Vladimir Putin: Yes, quite good.

But what would I like to add? He is a man with strong personal views, but he is also an experienced politician. Overall, if his knowledge and experience are directed towards peace, then yes, of course, he could play a positive role.

Reading between the lines

However, several questions naturally arise. First: how long would this international administration operate? How, and to whom, would power then be transferred? As I understand it, this plan foresees the possibility of eventually transferring power to a Palestinian administration.

I believe it would be best to transfer control directly to President Abbas and the current Palestinian administration. Perhaps they may face difficulties in addressing security matters. But as I heard from colleagues today, this plan also envisages that the power transfer may involve local militia groups in order to ensure security. Is that bad? In my opinion, this could be a good solution.

Putin knows that Abbas has little power in the West Bank, none in Gaza, and no support. If Abbas is in control, he must surrender power to the local militias — aka “Hamas”.

Let me repeat: we must understand how long this international administration will be in force. What is the timeframe for the transfer of civilian authority? No less important are security issues. I believe that this deserves support.

On one hand, we are talking about the release of all hostages held by Hamas, and on the other – the release of a significant number of Palestinians from Israeli prisons. It must also be made clear: how many Palestinians, who exactly, and in what timeframe this exchange would take place.

The Israelis will release prisoners because they want the whole hostage out of the way for domestic support, so they can force the Gazans into the Sinai and start a war with Iran. Except the Iran is prepared and Egypt has been quietly building up its forces in the Sinai.

And, of course, the most important issue: how does Palestine itself view this proposal? This is absolutely essential. Here, the opinion of the region and the entire Islamic world matters, but most of all Palestine itself and the Palestinians, including Hamas. There are different attitudes toward Hamas, and we also have our own position and contacts with them. It is important for us that both Hamas and the Palestinian Authority support such an initiative.

Underlying this is the fact the Hamas has huge support not only in Palestine but in the “Arab Street”, which Arab monarchies should be very afraid of. The PLO is a dead letter. But the Street is very alive.

All these questions require thorough and careful study. But if this plan is implemented, it would indeed represent a significant step towards settling the conflict. Still, I want to stress once again: the conflict can only be fundamentally resolved through the creation of a Palestinian state.

Here the problem is the Zionists will never accept a Palestinian State - not as long as they own the United States of Israel (formerly the USA).

Coffee

Putin, by the way, likes tea with honey. No, he doesn’t bathe in the blood of virgins. Me, I like tea and chocolate. And also coffee with raw cacao and a little olive oil. But the coffees you donate to me, go to buy for Chappy and Ichi’s food and fishy treats.

You will see lots of videos on bobcats. But one should remember they are not housecats or pets - they are solitary, wild animals, who occasionally adopt a human.

I don’t feel I adopted Ichi and Chappy - they adopted me. I didn’t save them. They saved me.

To donate and keep the three of us going - please Click HERE!

Healthy Aging

How do you achieve an optimum diet?

It’s really not that difficult.

Diet is mostly habit. So improving your diet is just giving up bad habits and making it a matter of choice.

For starters, unlearn everything you were taught about food in school. Forget fad diets on the internet. Don’t listen to friends and family. Think for yourself,

Your ancestors were foragers.

They ate a huge variety of foods—whatever was available. That’s why we have color vision. It helps us distinguish different edibles.The healthiest veggies and fruits are what color?

All colors! Green, yellow, orange, red,brown,black, white.

Today,however, you have the advantage of supermarkets and frozen foods — chicken, veggies, whatever. And a good refrigerator give you options your ancestors didn’t have—since they had to eat everything right away, which included wild grains, berries and insects (which have more protein than beef BTW).

Have a pizza now and again. Or a filet mignon. Or cake or pie. Or a hamburger. Be kind to yourself — but not too kind.

For example,I love chocolate. So I buy raw cacao powder in bulk and sweeten it with stevia and oligosaccharides. If you the right kind of stevia it does not have a licorice aftertaste — AND it is an anticancer agent. Oligosaccharides are pre-biotic. And raw cacao is considered a superfood.

Putin, by the way, like tea with honey. No, he doesn’t bathe in the blood of virgins.

I mostly just eat for nutrition—but every now and again I have to pig out, preferably with friends, who do not share my dietary peculiarities.

Variety can be fun. And you can slow down, if not reverse aging.