I wrote this post originally back in 2020 I believe
Arguing against white supremacy isn’t arguing against the “classification” of white people or European culture or history.
Disclaimer: I’m not saying that Russia as a county or a people are bad or to be feared. I’m not saying that Orthodox Christianity is bad.
However, you have separate the good from the bad. The bad being that certain elements are influencing the US and European Far Right. Sometimes its coming out of Russia but other times its an appropriation by US and European Far Right groups such as the Alt Right and Neo Nazis who find inspiration in Russian Imperial and Soviet Era iconography with latter inspired by the “Red Brown Alliance”, i.e., an idea dating back to Otto Von Bismarck who wished to ally Germany with Russia.
This Alt Right sect was originally not taken seriously by mainstream or moderate Republicans but slowly grew into an influential force within the MAGA movement. Younger Republicans are influenced by Groypers such as Nick Fuentes, antisemites such as Will Sexton (who is an Orthodox convert), Jay Dyer (an Orthodox Convert), Candace Owens, and even further Right figures. You can call them 8chan or Reddit Era Republicans.
Due to the major stall or let down of the Russia-gate situation, I think most Americans have relegated Russia to the status of “Muh, Russia”, but they often don’t see the actual influence of Russia within the online Alt Right, but also in establishment GOP Republican politics.
Even the Pacifist Anti-Establishment Left (The Greyzone, Graham Elwood, Jimmy Dore, Katie Halper, etc.) are complicit in underestimating Russian influence because like the conspiracy minded Right Wing (Richard Spencer, Jay Dyer, Lauren Southern, Alex Jones, etc.), they too fear the government and look at the government as a propaganda machine for war but they overlook the threat of Russian influence within American white supremacy in order to hedge against war.
War is ugly, but also being ignorant of Russian influence in order to support your cause which therefore supports the Alt Right and the Kremlin.
My opinion is that Russia-gate was a fiasco and was the American power establishment (Deep State) who contorted the real truth of Russian Soft-power for their own benefit but threw the American people under the bus by leading us on a nearly two-year interactive conspiracy game, largely, because the state did not want to lose more leverage than it already lost because the USA was spread thin globally during the Bush and Obama Administrations.
The USA was exposed and vulnerable. This being-spread-thin-status of the American defense apparatus, created a prime opportunity for Russia to make gains, defensive barriers, but also exploit the underlying white supremacy of the reactionary right-wings of the United States and Western/Central Europe.
For example, Russia manipulated the Right Wing’s fear over Latin American immigration in the USA; presented itself as an alternative to the issues of globalism by pointing out the US NATO war-created refugees of Syria and Libya and the African trans-Saharan corridor for undocumented immigration, and provided an “Anti-Modern” Orthodox ideology to combat expanding rights to women, minorities, and non-heterosexuals.
The US Mainstream Media and State used real facts in part but also many lies and fabrications to launch a reactionary campaign to hedge Trump’s unilateral power after he won since he held both Chambers of Congress, nominated three SCOTUS judges, nominated many Federal Circuit Court Judges, and had a loyal Executive Branch ran by the Heritage Foundation. Also MAGA is full of unqualified individuals and many have ties to Russian money.
However, Russia may not have hacked into any voting machines (though it’s plausible Israelis who have strong ties to Russia did) but Russia more so did “social networking”.
Russian infiltration is a combination of multiple tactics such as (1) Spread Soft Power such as buying real-estate, sport teams, wining and dining elites, and selling an image of wealth and prosperity such as in the Russian billionaire class (2) Appealing to a common European ancestry especially since the political-left has made gains analyzing and deconstructing white supremacy, (3) Using “postmodern” tactics such as online content spanning blogging, podcasts, chat rooms, and anonymous accounts, etc., and (4) Religion such as using Orthodoxy as a new alternative to re-establishing Christianity by undermining Catholicism and Protestantism, but also equating the Orthodox Church as the Protector of Israel as a type of alternative to American Zionism.
Thus the strategy is multi-dimensional and uses isolated categories which can rub off on each other to merge and create a larger consensus for Russian acceptance.
Mitchell Research Group 