Forbes:
With the Kremlin labeling the West an enemy, the country’s militaristic spirit — subdued after the fall of the Iron Curtain – seems to be getting a second wind.
In the Soviet Union, February 23rd has traditionally been celebrated as the Soviet Army and Navy day. After the end of the cold war and the dissolution of the USSR, the holiday was renamed ‘Defender of the Fatherland’ day. It was gradually losing its military flavor and by inertia continued to be celebrated in the post-Soviet countries as a festive occasion for women and girls to honor the entire male population – husbands, fathers, classmates – regardless of whether they had anything to do with the military.
This year, Russia stepped up its nationalistic and patriotic efforts and the Army day was marked by the return of military glory. The holiday is gaining its original purpose: to promote the servicemen and the army. Russia – according to its people and leadership – has reinvented its status as a great state that is in danger with plenty of enemies, from the U.S. to Europe to Ukraine.
The Army Day is celebrated with special broadcasts on major TV channels, events honoring veterans, and activities involving children getting acquainted with firearms.
While there is nothing wrong with the country’s desire to have a strong army and honor servicemen, much of what’s going on in Russia today – from pre-school education to slogans in public rallies – resembles the Soviet Union of old, when the possibility of war and preparedness to attack the enemy was part of people’s daily lives.
This past weekend, during a big Anti-Maidan rally – a Kremlin-approved mass demonstration against any hint of revolutionary sentiment in Russia – a fake ballistic missile was paraded in the heart of Moscow that read “to be personally delivered to Obama…
