| | | Americans are convinced that 9/11 was the moment when "everything went to shit". No doubt, it was the loud bang of the 20th century's casket. But I'd argue that "everything went to shit" in 1991.
Catastrophically fast for Russia, gradually for the US: financialization of GDP, scrapping Cold War programs, literal degradation across many tech sectors, outsourcing of industry, etc.
9/11 is massively over-weighted in terms of its consequences, while the "long 1991" is swept under the rug -- or framed as an American victory -- even though nearly all major conflicts raging today are part of the long unfolding caused by a single decisive event: the dissolution of the USSR.
After 9/11, Russia went all in for the US. Airspace, intel, no veto on Afghanistan or Iraq. And got absolutely nothing out of it.
The only clear winner in both 1991 and 9/11 was Israel: a million skilled workers from the Soviet collapse, and US boots on the ground in the Middle East.
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Tom |
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