If Putin had been a good guy, what would have he done for Russia instead? (fedia.io)

submitted 3 weeks ago by atro_city@fedia.io to c/asklemmy@lemmy.world

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With all the money going into the Ukraine war and other ventures since Putin came to power, I imagine there's a lot of stuff he could've done to make the world a better place and Russia a formidable world power.

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[-] TransplantedSconie@lemm.ee 83 points 3 weeks ago

The amount of minable materials in the vast area of Siberia could have set russia up as an economic powerhouse. That's why China is helping them run themselves into the meat grinder in Ukraine. The inevitable collapse will allow them to scoop up the area.

[-] JubilantJaguar@lemmy.world 32 points 3 weeks ago

Almost every single country with an extraction-based economy is either a dictatorship or a failed state. The single exception is Norway, which discovered oil after it was already an advanced democracy. A country with natural resources does not need to invest in its human capital, or worry about democracy.

Russia's natural resources are its curse.

[-] TBi@lemmy.world 11 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago)

There is actually a good video by CGP grey on why this is. https://youtu.be/rStL7niR7gs

[-] muntedcrocodile@lemm.ee 4 points 3 weeks ago

Remove the tracker from that url https://youtu.be/rStL7niR7gs

[-] Honytawk@lemmy.zip 3 points 3 weeks ago

The Netherlands is also wealthy because of their natural gas.

So it is definitely possible to not be a dictatorship, and a good Putin would make it so.

[-] JubilantJaguar@lemmy.world 20 points 3 weeks ago

The Netherlands is absolutely not wealthy because of its natural gas. The Netherlands is a manufacturing center, a farming powerhouse (it's literally the world's number 2 food exporter). It was Europe's original trading empire. Today it contains the closest thing Europe has to Silicon Valley, with world-class universities and the super-high-tech ASML. It's been a wealthy country for centuries because it has invested in its people. The natural gas is an anecdote.

[-] alcoholicorn@lemmy.ml 3 points 3 weeks ago

It’s been a wealthy country for centuries because it has invested in its people.

OK, but mostly it's the imperialism.

[-] JubilantJaguar@lemmy.world 10 points 3 weeks ago

Sweden and Finland, to take just two nearby examples, are roughly as wealthy as the Netherlands. Neither had an empire. Portugal, the world's first superpower, with colonies on three continents, is far poorer than any of those three countries.

Russia is currently trying to re-establish its empire, and impoverishing itself in the process.

Imperialism is a red herring.

[-] pewgar_seemsimandroid@lemmy.blahaj.zone 1 points 3 weeks ago

isn't asml British?

[-] atro_city@fedia.io 6 points 3 weeks ago

ASML Holding, a Dutch company that supplies photolithography systems for the semiconductor industry

You're one search away from the truth, my friend

[-] pewgar_seemsimandroid@lemmy.blahaj.zone 1 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago)

holding? so looks like i will be going on the wikipedia app today

edit: hmm it truly is, must've confused ARM.

[-] JubilantJaguar@lemmy.world 2 points 3 weeks ago

You're thinking of ARM

[-] BilboBargains@lemmy.world 1 points 3 weeks ago

In America the corporate dictatorship was started when oil was discovered and the billionaire class created.

[-] Mobilityfuture@lemmy.world 6 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago)

in addition to mineral deposits they also have natural gas and historically a good amount of people in the developed cities well trained in math, programming, and technical sciences.

They could have been an economic powerhouse in 21st century if they weren’t beholden to Putin and oligarchy.

[-] mojofrododojo@lemmy.world 1 points 3 weeks ago

I've been saying for years, China still wants Yongmingcheng (vladivostok) back. Why fight every country in the pacific aside from North Korea when there's more arable land and tremendous mineral wealth to the north, and the north will not be able to defend itself.

I'd love to see how well Russia does against a peer combatant.

this post was submitted on 30 Oct 2024

86 points (92.2% liked)

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