One of the benefits of my relationship with BlueWater Partners is the interesting and diverse people I meet. Last week, I had the opportunity to spend some time speaking with a young lady from the Czech Republic. She is from a modestly wealthy Czech family and her take on the Russia/Georgia issue was interesting. The Czechs are still just getting used to a return to private, non-government ownership of property after the Russians left last time. Her own family has re-taken ownership of property that was controlled by the Russians for over thirty years. She feels that every bite taken by Russia only increases their appetite for further acquisition.
She said the governments of the former USSR countries (as well as other countries with a history of being taken over, like Poland) are eager to have United States military bases or missile sites on their land, but the people aren’t so sure. The governments feel the United States presence will deter possible takeover attempts. The people remain unconvinced. Many feel it is just the beginning of yet another powerful country posturing to take control of their smaller sovereign nations. As a Canadian, I often fail to consider what it must be like to live in a country so tenuously situated in the world. I also sometimes forget that every time a country like Russia moves into a country like Georgia, millions of lives are disrupted. It’s not just the casualties of the fighting who suffer. It is the thousands of people who went to bed owning a family home, with all the history inherent in such a home, and waking up to find that a remote government has decided that the family property would be of better use to the state if it was owned by the government. It should have been obvious to me, perhaps, but the conversation was enlightening. These people are just like you and I. It’s easy to lose sight of that.
By Myron Gushlak
