This is just six people randomly picked out on Red Square, but it's pretty representative of man-on-the-street Russian opinion about the leaked Bushie nuke plans.
Chris Doss The Russia Journal ----------------------------
This article was published in The Russia Journal ISSUE No.9 (152), DATE: 2002-03-15
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- RJ STREET POLL: What do you think about the U.S. move to prepare contingency plans that include the possible use of nuclear weapons against Russia? (Moscow)
By DMITRY BULGAKOV in Moscow / The Russia Journal
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SVETLANA KORINA, 36, HAIRDRESSER
I used to consider the United States to be a country with strong democratic traditions, one that promotes peace and cooperation around the globe. The image of the U.S. has been seriously tarnished. Some really dangerous signals are coming from America, like their desire to attack Iraq just because of their crazy idea of terrorist regimes. Saddam Hussein has never supported Islamic fundamentalism, and North Korea has never been suspected of any connection with terrorism.
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ARKADY TRUTNEV, 77, PENSIONER
The U.S. shouldn't try to intimidate Russia. I heard on the Voice of Liberty that America is spending a lot of money in its effort to destroy Russia. Unfortunately, we can’t do much about American threats. Our army is in bad shape. So we really can't do anything to oppose the Americans. The American list of targeted countries is quite strange. There are all these undemocratic states – North Korea, China, Libya, Iraq, Syria, Iran. Why was Russia included in that lowly list?
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IVAN PETROV, 80, PENSIONER
I'm a World War II veteran, and I can tell you that the situation before that war was strangely similar to the one now. We also had a good friend then, Nazi Germany, who went on to attack us. Now America is like Nazi Germany; it's trying to spread its influence all over the world. It has deceived us, telling us we were true friends. And now we’ve been put on a list with the world’s other rogue states. At the very least, the American approach toward us is ambiguous and untruthful. They have lied to us.
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ANASTASIA ISUPOVA, 17, STUDENT
Equating Russia with North Korea is wrong, and any attack on us would definitely be retaliated against. The Americans should get rid of their Cold War mentality. In the civilized world of the 21st century, countries should think positively and be supportive of others, rather than be so combative. This American nuclear-target list just goes to show that America doesn't want to be supportive. ... Any attack on Russia – we’ve got several thousand nuclear warheads ourselves – would be suicide.
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NIKOLAI VYKHODTSEV, 21, CHURCH RESTORER
Russia is a spiritual stronghold and we should not fear America. If America does anything wrong, it will be punished by God. I believe in kindness and justice, and I hope that Russia will withstand any potential threats from other nations. Certainly, I hope for the best and will pray that everything will turn out all right.
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NIKOLAI SAMSONOV, 59, PUBLIC SERVANT
It's absurd to compare Russia to North Korea. It’s likely the document that obtained by American journalists is a very secret one. I’ve never heard a single word about any Russian targets. Russia hasn’t targeted any countries with its missiles for years. We stated that we’ll only use our nuclear weapons for defense. The Americans either don't appreciate our good will and willingness to cooperate, or they want to intimidate us. This proves that we need a strong army to defend us from such threats.