A few days ago, off the coast of Sochi, a plane belonging to the Russian Ministry of Defense crashed on its way from Moscow to Syria. Among the passengers were 64 artists of the Alexandrov Ensemble, who were supposed to perform a concert for Russian military personnel in Aleppo. Whether the plane crashed on its own or was brought down, we are unlikely to find out. What is interesting is our reaction to this event “on the enemy’s side”.
Indeed, for many Ukrainians, over the past two years, Russia has transformed from a friendly neighbor into an aggressor and an enemy. And all because Russia, being what it is, took away Crimea from us, started a war in our Donbass, and in general doesn’t let us live in peace. And if Russia is the enemy, then any misfortune of theirs is our joy, isn’t it?
I found a good collection of such opinions: let them “lie there at the bottom and think about the innocent Syrian children” they were flying to help bomb; it’s a pity that “the Kremlin gang wasn’t on board in full force”; and we don’t pity them, they “flew to carry out quasi-military tasks and support those who commit genocide”, and so on.
This hysterical patriotism surrounding the tragedy is just another confirmation that we do not understand the nature of this war, and all modern wars in general. We see enemies in those who are not, and vice versa. And we do this out of stupidity.
Military pilots are not enemies of the human race, nor are the unfortunate singers from the crashed plane. Not the ensemble with anthems in praise of the Russian-Crimean homeland, not even Putin. Not terrorists and not corrupt officials. They are all our misfortunes, our problems, but the problem is not with them. They are just a consequence, not the root cause.
The root cause is us, in front of our TV screens.
On one territory, people are planted in front of screens, telling them that they are independent and they are called Ukraine. A bit more servile, similar viewers from similar screens are told that they are a great empire and they are called Russia. And both believe. Some celebrate victories in Crimea, Chechnya, and Syria. Others exude malice when a plane with an ensemble crashes into the sea.
The problem is that neither group understands that their patriotism and belief in victory are the guarantee of prosperity for those who wage war, loot the treasury, and gradually lead the increasingly foolish citizens of both territories into slavery.
Viewer, think, who benefits from your hatred? Who needs you to be a stupid and fanatical patriot? Whom are you trying to protect by defending your homeland from those like you, who are robbed and deceived? Who benefits from your anger being directed at the deceased artists?
Why not direct it towards a judge or prosecutor whom you can encounter daily on the streets of your city, in Lexuses and Mercedes? You, the viewer, do not wish death upon them. Why?
Translated by ChatGPT gpt-3.5-turbo/42 on 2024-04-20 at 17:31
