Russia staged a huge May Day parade on Moscow's Red Square for the first time since the Soviet era on Thursday, with workers holding banners proclaiming support for President Vladimir Putin after the seizure of territory from neighboring Ukraine. ...
Unlike Kremlin leaders in Soviet times, Putin did not personally preside at the parade from atop the mausoleum.
That's nice. A big middle finger to the West, telling us that Putin rejects the West. I've long hoped that Russia would stop seeing the West as a threat and join the West. That's not in the cards, I guess.
Pity. We could revive the old practice of Kremlinology, which looked for who stood where on the platform watching the parade to judge status and power of the players.
I always felt that when I was in college the 1980s I was somewhat prescient by rejecting a major in Soviet studies. That was too pessimistic, I thought. By the time I had my MA, the Berlin Wall had fallen.
But perhaps I was too hasty. I guess I'm glad I have my old political science text books on the Soviet Union.
