Crimea and Beowulf

When I heard that the Crimean parliament voted to hold a plebiscite March 16 to decide whether to secede from Ukraine and join Russia, my thoughts went to the decision made by the Beowulf government to hold a plebiscite over secession from the Solarian League.

Specifically, I thought about how having Russian troops occupying Crimea when the vote is taken is exactly what Beowulf hopes to avoid by keeping Truman's wallers out at the Terminus. Nobody other than Russia and its close friends will think a vote taken under such conditions means Jack Schidt.

I wonder if the next mainline book, which apparently is going to include the Mandarins' brainstorm of sending a task force to σDra to squash the rebellion, will include some discussion of the disposition of GA forces being such as they are referencing the Crimean plebiscite nine decades ante-diaspora.

It seems like it would be a perfect fit to me.

Thats actually a really interesting comparison.

Although I personally don't believe Russia will fudge the vote, or have any need to. The peninsula is almost entirely ethnic Russian.

Even if we don't see it referenced I won't be surprised if we see some parallels in the responses.

Direwolf18 wrote:Thats actually a really interesting comparison.

Although I personally don't believe Russia will fudge the vote, or have any need to. The peninsula is almost entirely ethnic Russian.

Even if we don't see it referenced I won't be surprised if we see some parallels in the responses.

Amen!

Keep in mind that the "interim government" in Ukraine came to power via a coup that was apparently instigated by the US. uS State Depratment official Victoria Nuland got videotaped passing out cookies to rioters then got her phone tapped as she was decreeing who would be on the revolutionary, interim cabinet. To make matters worse there is credible evidence that the snipers who were shooting Ukrainian police as well as demonstrators were third part (US special forces or mercenary?), false flag operation.

The parallels to the Beawulf situation are so obvious that one has to wonder if Weber is clairvoyant.

I considered starting thread with a similar theme but was deterred by the prospect of the inevitable fecal storm of liberal indignation. I will now stay out of it.

TheMonster wrote:When I heard that the Crimean parliament voted to hold a plebiscite March 16 to decide whether to secede from Ukraine and join Russia, my thoughts went to the decision made by the Beowulf government to hold a plebiscite over secession from the Solarian League.

Specifically, I thought about how having Russian troops occupying Crimea when the vote is taken is exactly what Beowulf hopes to avoid by keeping Truman's wallers out at the Terminus. Nobody other than Russia and its close friends will think a vote taken under such conditions means Jack Schidt.

I wonder if the next mainline book, which apparently is going to include the Mandarins' brainstorm of sending a task force to σDra to squash the rebellion, will include some discussion of the disposition of GA forces being such as they are referencing the Crimean plebiscite nine decades ante-diaspora.

It seems like it would be a perfect fit to me.

namelessfly wrote:Keep in mind that the "interim government" in Ukraine came to power via a coup that was apparently instigated by the US.

There are some pretty good parallels between that "coup" and the one pulled off by the Kornatian Parliament in Shadow of Saganami.

My use of scare quotes will indicate to the astute observer that I don't consider the term entirely appropriate. The duly elected members of the Ukrainian and Kornatian Parliaments acted in accordance with their respective constitutions to remove a President. (Nor do I consider the forced resignation of Richard Nixon, another parallel to the Kornatian situation, to have been a "coup".)

But the very fact that people believe there was some kind of US influence in the Ukrainian Parliament, and Russian influence in the Crimean, is what makes outside observers of both "coups" question their legitimacy, which is what the GA wants to avoid in the Beowulf plebiscite.

Direwolf18 wrote:Thats actually a really interesting comparison.

Although I personally don't believe Russia will fudge the vote, or have any need to. The peninsula is almost entirely ethnic Russian.

I've been told that the Russian installed government is the party that got 3% of the vote last time Crimea held elections.

4% lead by the "Goblin". Mind you if you think Crimea is such a big deal just cast your mind back to Kosovo. Canada opposes it because of Quebec. It is all just politics.

I wonder should Beowulf join the GA if the other SL systems will boycott Beowulf.

Please, for the love of Weber do not bring Kosovo into this. If you do, I'm bound to get into bloody fight with someone.

Meaning no offence to the people there suffering through this crisis. But Crimea has been seized numerous times in its history - inevitable, as it occupies a key strategical position in the Black Sea.

History will view this crisis as another one of those bumps, as long as WW3 isn't started by it, in as little as ten or twenty years. Example in hand: The Yugoslav Wars.

Beowulf's secession is more akin to either the Roman or British empires losing one of its most powerful members to trigger a collapse of the Empire.

munroburton wrote:Meaning no offence to the people there suffering through this crisis. But Crimea has been seized numerous times in its history - inevitable, as it occupies a key strategical position in the Black Sea.

History will view this crisis as another one of those bumps, as long as WW3 isn't started by it, in as little as ten or twenty years. Example in hand: The Yugoslav Wars.

Beowulf's secession is more akin to either the Roman or British empires losing one of its most powerful members to trigger a collapse of the Empire.

It should be interesting to see how long we can keep this thread on the Beowulf/Honorverse topic before skidding into politics and getting locked (over/under is 27 posts).

Truth about the Crimea, munro, it happens to be in the wrong geographical location, and Russian national interest for centuries has been for a 'warm-water' port (one of their reasons for the conflicts with Turkey in the past).

I think, however, in relation to the Honorverse this is closer to the SL/OFS (or maybe the old People's Republic)seizing a Verge system (that they have prepared for revolution/government change) from something that resembled the Silensian Confederacy--large but relatively impotent to do anything about it, and other powers are unwilling to risk 'problems' by doing anythng to stop it.