> The Ukrainians did not protest an "oppressive regime" - for if that was what
> bothered them, they plenty of opportunities since Stalin. They protested
> because the system that provided them with bread and circuses collapsed and
> the bottom fell of their daily lives. People rebelled because they saw no
> future in Ukraine - the only real opportunity was either sex work (if you
> were a woman) or hard dangerous or menial work nobody else wanted (if were a
> man) west of the border. But even that bleak condition continued
> unprotected for a while - the protest erupted only as a result of well
> organized and paid with Western money push.
>
> So the popular will, window of opportunity and an effective push for a
> protest action are what makes all the difference in the world. The US has
> neither and is unlikely to have all three any time soon.
Woah. I knew that personal agency and free will are rejected concepts by the Commie Calvinists on this list, but now it looks like we are seeing the successor to Anybody But Bush leftism: Do Nothing Leftism.
If you've concluded that the system can't be changed, then it is very easy to hang around an email list talking about which color of paint to slap on the next model of Democratic Turkey.
WS: You anaylsis in the other e-mail about how Bush won may describe how Bush motivated his Fox News watching base, but I think that most of his support came from scared Americans who tend to support any authoritarian leader in a time of crisis. You may have noticed how the terrorist emergency alert chart hasn't been changed since last summer.
Chuck