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© AFP 2017/ MLADEN ANTONOV
Talking to Russia, anyone in government who does (talk with Russia) is sane and reasonable. Why wouldn't we talk with and have normal relations with Russia? Oh that's right, it's because the United States prefers to be at war with everybody everywhere all the time. Just like we prefer, in 2014, to install Nazis by coup d'etat in power in Ukraine, and effectively by that coup claim Sevastopol and Crimea for NATO and the US fleet. Now that's crazier than anything in Dr Strangelove, because this American land grab represents the entirety of American political culture, not one lone lunatic (General Jack D. Ripper). But whatever, continue with the Russia demonization and Nazi coups on Russia's borders. Go ahead, continue demanding that Russia hand over its only warm water naval base, from a strategic position Russia has held since before the United States existed. And go on with your delusion that you're the reasonable one.

What about the "election hacking collusion"?

So the Russia/Trump collusion story goes like this: Russia believes Clinton to be hostile to Russia (that part's accurate), so Russia either incited a mole inside the DNC to leak damaging DNC/Team Clinton emails to wikileaks, or hacked them and delivered the emails to wikileaks. BUT in order to do this, Russia needed Donald Trump to sign off and give the OK and so had secret contacts with Trump for that purpose. Are you serious? This makes no sense. You believe it because you want to and because you're punch drunk from anti Russia propaganda. That's not pro-American propaganda either. That's just pro war propaganda, pure and simple. If you support it then you're throwing away your ability to think and reason, and your ability to be a decent human being.

An example of lost ability to reason: according to media/political innuendo, the idea of an American politician or candidate meeting with a foreign ambassador, we're supposed to accept that this in itself is some kind of violation. For all ambassadors of all countries, including our own, it is their job to make contacts and represent their country's interests in the business, political, and cultural communities in which they are posted. Nothing could be more common or normal. According to US media though, any contact with any Russian is spooky and criminal. Utter nonsense, and part of a systematic Russia demonization propaganda campaign. Personally I want nothing to do with it and do not consent.

I don't consent to hostility to Russia, or to any country. The US is hostile to Russia again these days, but that hostility is not a sign of promotion of America or American interests. Rather it's a sign of the promotion of hostility and the interests of hostility.

Let's review history. Russia endured, and repelled, an invasion of Nazi German forces into Russia, at a cost of 27 million Russian lives. Russia (The Soviet Union) defeated Germany in WWII (95% of German soldiers killed were killed by the Soviet Union). After the war, Russia occupied Eastern Europe for 44 years as a security buffer against a hostile west. 27 years ago Russia dismantled the Soviet Union. Spun off huge territories into a number of new independent nation states. Dismantled the Warsaw Pact military alliance. Packed up all Soviet Occupation forces in Europe and went home.

Is this aggression? Does this behavior justify the continued existence and expansion of NATO up to Russia's border? Does it justify demonizing Russia? On what basis does the west believe that a western backed coup in Kiev in 2014 - and subsequent coup regime announcement (on day 1) of intent to renege on Ukraine's multi-decade Sevastopol base lease treaty with Russia - on what basis is this justification for (more) hostility toward Russia? The basis of course, is madness.

There is no Russian aggression. "Russian aggression" is US doublespeak for US aggression.