Reagan, Russia and a giant bear believed to embody the power of God

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AMERICAN EXPERIENCE | The Presidents | PBS

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Reagan, Russia and a giant bear believed to embody the power of God

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How fitting, that in this election season with multiple quotes from the great communicator floating around like lobbyists at a Washington park picnic that I would run in to the PBS production of The Presidents - Ronald Reagan.

Wrestling announcers, Sports coaches, Republican candidates, CNN analysts and the Barackstar himself have all been to The Reagan Well this fall. He brought down the wall, fed the markets, launched a wars on drug, sex and morality yet Reagan’s defining moment (s) all revolve around the Soviet Union and its eventual collapse.

Groundbreaking negotiations that almost witnessed the complete abolition of all nuclear weapons, or so they say. Reagan and Gorbi possibly the greatest negotiation between two international powerhouses in history. The cold war ended after his tenure, the Wall tumbled beyond his watch but Gorbachev like the millions of American who sough to it that the Great Communicator served two terms as leader of the free world genuinely liked, positively trusted and certainly shared common ground with Ronald Reagan.

"If Alien were to land on the plant earth and ask us to take them to our planets leader, they would be directed to Mikhail Gorbachev"

This was the media punch-line as "the wimp" George Herbert Walker Bush quietly slide into the White House, taking over Reagan’s desk and abruptly replacing his staff.

As President, Bush came around, shedding the wimp moniker, seizing control of international power, witnessing the fall of the Berlin wall and proceeding over the dying ember of the cold war.

So what does all this have to do with this years election? Where does this connect to Obama/McCain 08?

Following an almost twenty year silence mother Russia has emerged from her elegant slumber with a re-acquired hunger for land, power and an oil pipeline. Reagan’s dream of a liberated Russia were hardly fulfilled, although Russia has seen economic liberation, the leopard has not changed his spots, the old bear still terrifies her neighbours, distains authority and is quite possibly eating the press.

I would appear the fool to recommend that the incoming President whom ever that may be, read a piece of fictional literature, Richard Adams, Shardik but the truth is that since the Reagan administration most of, if not all of America’s beliefs surrounding Russia have been based somewhere in the realm of fantasy. Senators McCain and Obama we, the American people implore you, read the book and heed the warning. The Bear may sleeps but she never dies.

Zoltan Black

"He is close, Saiyett- injured and very ill, so far as I can judge......he will die-"

"He will not, replied the Tunginda briskly" "If it is indeed Lord Shardik, he will not die"

To check out the latest installment of the PBS series, The President featuring Presidents Roosevelt, Truman, Johnson, Nixon, Carter, Bush and oh yeah of course The Great Communicator himself Ronald Reagan visit http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/presidents/