Tucker Carlson’s interview
Some form of dislocation is the only possible explanation for why people in the West support Vladimir Putin (Back Story, February 17th). A strong identification with and advocacy for an ideology, country, or leader that diverges from one’s own interests and values is indicative of “transferred nationalism”, a concept introduced by George Orwell in his essay, “Notes on Nationalism”, published in 1945.
Transferred nationalism causes individuals to become more dishonest and malignant in supporting their own native country, where they have genuine knowledge and experience. Despite championing liberty and democracy at home, they abandon their principles, literary preferences, and, to some extent, their moral sense when engaging in debates on international affairs, often without even realising it. Debates and TV interviews will not reduce these leanings, they will only continue to reinforce them. As Orwell suggested, countering these tendencies is possible, but it demands a sincere moral effort.
SEBASTIAN WOLLER
Bern, Switzerland
Far from being a senseless ramble by an out of touch “crank”, Mr Putin’s screed on Russian history in his interview with Tucker Carlson was a shrewd message for a different audience: the Russians. Mr Putin managed the remarkable feat of sending two messages in the same interview to two audiences that will listen to different parts. Westerners may have listened to only short bits of the interview.
But for Russians, who may have been the only ones to have watched the whole thing, recalling a millenarian history of endurance and overcoming foreign invaders who initially had the upper hand, such as the Mongols, Napoleon and the Nazis, is a powerful invitation to resist the hardships of the Ukrainian war, the hundreds of thousands of soldiers killed and wounded and the total isolation of their country. Just like their ancestors, who eventually prevailed.
LUCA D’AGNESE
Rome