A VICIOUS CIRCLE | THE MINISTRY OF ATTACK Part 4. FINALE
Is the Army a mirror of society, and vice versa?
This is the final part of our series: THE MINISTRY OF ATTACK.
For decades, everyone pretended that the army's problems were "out there" until they led to a catastrophe that affected everyone.
Why, at this critical moment, have the military and society failed to talk to each other? Our conversation also touches on the issue of deserters—a topic that needs to be discussed louder and more honestly today than ever before.
In this episode, we examine how violence, lies, and corruption were formed long before a person joined a unit. How society itself helped shape the army into what it is today by 2022. From the Soviet wars to Chechnya, from the occupation of Crimea to Syria. We show how each unresolved conflict became the foundation for the next.
We discuss why masculinity in Russia has been replaced for decades by a cult of strength, how prison "concepts" have permeated popular culture, why soldiers' mothers' committees were the only ones attempting to systematically combat hazing, and how propaganda has destroyed political debate, leaving the army and civil society in parallel realities.
We also examine the main blind spot of 2022—the mass refusals of Russian military personnel to participate in the war. Why didn't society see them? Why was the anti-war movement unable to transform this internal protest into force? And what role did the long-standing gap between the army and civilians play in this?
This is an honest conversation about what happened and why it was possible. What responsibility both sides bear. And yes, without illusions: neither you, nor I, nor the history of recent decades can be erased from these processes.
If you want to understand how the Russian army became what it is and why its state is a direct reflection of the state of society, this episode is for you.
00:00 Intro
00:14 Introduction
00:58 Invaluable Experience
02:35 Normalization of Violence
03:55 Every Man for Himself
04:49 The Army is a Mirror of Society
06:44 Soldiers' Fathers Committee
07:57 I Hope There's No War
9:00 "School of Life"
10:03 Image of a Man
11:18 How to Motivate a Contract Soldier
13:07 Identity Crisis
15:57 One Against All
17:37 International Duty
21:22 A Small Victorious War
23:14 War in Georgia
23:55 "Polite" "People"
25:33 Society's Conclusions
26:33 "How Can This Be?"
29:00 War in the Syrian Arab Republic
31:01 Something's Wrong with the Army
31:23 Our Own
32:10 Consequences of Disengagement
33:33 How to Receive the Order of Courage
35:52 Conscientious Objectors
37:08 Exemplary Discharge from the Armed Forces
37:53 Unnoticed Resistance from the Military
39:39 Who Can Help?
41:15 Enemy for All
41:48 Putin's Silovik
43:04 The Editorial Board Demands Blood
44:08 Broken Spears
46:13 The Gap Between Deserters and Society
48:05 The Fate of Man
50:43 The Party of February 23
53:52 The Split of Society
54:43 The Fence Is No More
55:22 The Need for Dialogue
56:37 Warrior, Remember Who You Are