Russia Is Toby Flenderson, The U.S. Is Michael G. Scott

I really don’t think it was Vladimir Putin’s goal to topple the West. It was just, in the end, the only viable option given him. Early on, he was the hand-chosen pick of Boris Yeltsin, who commended him to President Clinton. I remember Putin’s desire to work WITH the West, to join all their institutions. Putin wanted Russia to join NATO, and I don’t mean that as any kind of compliment to him. He wanted to be part of the G7. He was eager to be part of the in crowd, wanted to sit at the cool kids’ table. But Russia was like the big kid who wasn’t cool like the others. The others all had their spots at the table which they had worked hard to achieve and they were all worried that the big oaf would upset the seating arrangement.

This was especially true of the U.S. Russia was just big enough to potentially pose a threat to them. The other kids, especially France, Germany, and the U.K. were suck-ups who did whatever the hell the U.S. told them to do. This will later be best demonstrated when the U.S. blew up the pipeline that was necessary for Germany’s economic health and Germany — and everyone else at the table — said “boo” about it.

The U.S. was just like Alex DeLarge in Clockwork Orange, who felt the need to keep Dim in check. He picked on him and belittled him every chance he could, but in the end it just led to a mutiny. Russia, by the way, is Dim, who was big and strong but lacked the flair and wit that would allow him to vie for the leadership role. If only Alex had kept his anger (and…