Something we have expected from February is now happening. The mobilization has started in Russia last Wednesday, and today the reserve officers have departed for the training centres. A lot of experts were arguing for it since the beginning of the Special Military Operation, but I believe there is time for everything. Now is the time for Russian men to protect the newly-freed territories of Donbass and the Kherson and Zaporozhye Regions.
The new “Flight”
Meanwhile, some people chose to flee Russia back in February, and some are leaving now. If you want to know the sentiment of the majority of Russians towards this “flight”, it is mostly a disdain.
People often confuse the government and the country. Whereas the love and support for the country often mean the approval of the government, the attitude to the government doesn’t equal the attitude to the country, its people and culture. I may dislike the government for some of its (in)actions but my love for my country will not let me seek the revolution.
The effect of globalization and “democratization” has been such that the notions of national pride and patriotism have been mocked for years on end. Yet, as the recent events show, they have not become obsolete or redundant. Having something to be proud of is pertinent to a man. Having a role model is vital for self-development. And love for a country is the same as love for a family. This is what we see in Serbia – and in Italy, following the victory of the Brothers of Italy.
Alas, as we see today, the institute of a family is being destroyed in Europe and America, and love for the country is considered a manifestation of racism. In truth, however, loving the country, one’s family and compatriots is healthy and indicates a high degree of self-awareness and development, for this love prepares you to sacrifice many things for your loved one. Including your love.
Patriots Abroad
The reason why the Russian government is not preventing those fleeing the country from doing so is quite obvious. We don’t need cowards, we don’t need those who may work to destroy the country from within. We want real men, real citizens who love their country and their compatriots.
Someone I studied with at the Lomonosov MSU went to Turkey in February. He studied Art History, so obviously he considers himself a mouthpiece of the Russian “intelligentzia“. Recently he felt the urge to express his attitude to the military operation, Putin, and all of us who have not fled the country. We, he said, are his enemies.
Well, if so, then he and his co-thinkers are better off to be away from the Russian horde. However, I reminded him about the General Denikin who fled Russia in the aftermath of the Civil War but who one of the first to provide financial assistance to the Soviet State during the Great Patriotic War (1941-1945). The Russian composer Sergey Rachmaninov also donated his concert money to the USSR throughout the war years until his death in 1943. This is what he wrote in letters from 1941-1942:
November 19, 1941: “This is the only way in which I can express my compassion for the sufferings of the people of my homeland”.
March 25, 1942: “From one of the Russians – here is my assistance to the Russian nation in its fight against the enemies. I want to believe, and I do believe, in complete victory”.
Following the victory at Stalingrad, 1943, Rachmaninov addressed Joseph Stalin with a short letter:
“I am now confident that my Motherland will defeat the agressors. I also admire the fact that despite its greatest ordeal the musical culture of fighting Russia, including that of the Russian nation, continues to enthrall the world, it is alive and continues to develop. I am willing to accept that we were probably wrong in the early 1920s when we thought that the Russian art was doomed to be destroyed or degraded”.
Mobilization
So, mobilization is going well. The soldiers are not being sent straight to the front. They first arrive at the training camp and it is not certain that they will actually go to fight. The territories of Donbass and other two regions need the people militia and other male help. The link will take you to a report in Telegram of Moscow reserve soldiers departing for Donbass. As for those “scared patriots” who chose to leave their homeland, we kind-heartedly mock them. They still have not realised that nobody wants them in either Europe or America. But I would also close the boundary, for we want to live, make families and do business with reliable people. I wouldn’t want anyone who chose to run away to ever come back and claim back their workplaces and chairs.
Likewise, there is more than one military operation going on at the moment. There is a lot to do within the country, in Moscow alone, in the spheres of civil life, e.g. education, health service, etc. So, we have all been mobilized, but, as the events of the bygone days show, we will conquer Mars after this Victory. Watch this space (sic!)
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