In Episode 112 [11] of the CounterVortex podcast [12], Bill Weinberg continues to deconstruct the cynical fascist pseudo-anti-fascism [13] of Vladimir Putin's war drive against Ukraine. Putin's speech [14] announcing his "military operation" in Ukraine says his aim is to "denazify" the country. This as Ukraine's Jews prepare to flee [15] the advancing Russian forces in a mass evacuation [16]. While Ukraine has been going in a more democratic direction since the 2014 Maidan Revolution [17], Russia over this same period has seen a consolidation of increasingly autocratic power [18] in the hands of Vladimir Putin—who has ruled continuously as either president or prime minister since 1999. As courageous anti-war protesters flood the streets of cities across Russia [19] in defiance of the authorities, the morally and intellectually bankrupt "left" in the United States echoes Putin's lies. Especially called out for regurgitating Kremlin propaganda that paints Ukraine as a "Nazi" state [25] and blames NATO for Putin's war of aggression [26] are the now essentially pro-war [27] CodePink and the very ironically named [28] Fairness & Accuracy in Reporting (FAIR [29]). Any genuine anti-war position [20] must begin with repudiating Putin's fascist ambition to rebuild the Russian empire. Listen on SoundCloud [11] or via Patreon [21].
Production by Chris Rywalt [30]
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