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Recasting the Red Star: Russia Forges Tradition and Technology Through Toughness

Timothy L. Thomas

Start date: February 10, 2014

Finish date: February 14, 2014

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Feb 14, 2014 Dolly rated it liked it

Shelves: washington-dc, afghanistan, russia, nonfiction, military, aviation, 2014, china-chinese

I discovered this book in the "new" section of the Pentagon library and thought I'd check it out. I realized right away that it was more of an academic compiling of research, but I still figured that I might learn something new or interesting about Russia's rise from the proverbial ashes of the Soviet Union.

I was frustrated at the misuse of the "Ya" (or backwards R) on the title page; anyone who has ever studied Russian would recognize that the Ya made the title nonsense, although I realize thi I discovered this book in the "new" section of the Pentagon library and thought I'd check it out. I realized right away that it was more of an academic compiling of research, but I still figured that I might learn something new or interesting about Russia's rise from the proverbial ashes of the Soviet Union.

I was frustrated at the misuse of the "Ya" (or backwards R) on the title page; anyone who has ever studied Russian would recognize that the Ya made the title nonsense, although I realize this is a petty complaint and made for an 'artistic' design. The cover was pretty snazzy for an academic piece.

I thought the information was well-researched and presented in a very readable format. I liked that the author laid out the sections of the book: Tradition, Technology, and the Russia-Georgia conflict. And I appreciated that the majority of his references were from translations of Russian publications, so the perspectives are truly Russian.

What I didn't like: I hated the rehashing (over and over and over and over) of the Russian-Georgian conflict. I get that the author wanted to reconstruct the event from as many different perspectives as possible, but it got old, very quickly. Similarly, most of the discussions could've been trimmed by about half. The repetition was a bit overwhelming and I felt like the author was trying to impress the reader with how much research he conducted.

Finally, even though this was a 'new' book in our library, it was published in 2011 and most of the information was from almost a decade ago. While the information isn't inaccurate, it already seems to be a bit out of date. The events of the Russia-Georgia conflict occurred more than 5 years ago and that can be ages in such a fast-moving technological age.

Still, the book offers an informative and insightful look into Russia. and as a military member who has visited Russia many times in the last three years, I can say that I was impressed with the overall theme and tone of the book.

interesting quotes:

"A tradition familiar to any U.S. officer who has shared a drink of vodka with a Russian officer is their tradition of military toasts. To abbreviate the process dramatically...the first toast (if it is a serious discussion between friends) is 'to those who have gone before us in military service.' Or, if you are listening to a serious Russian, it would be 'we drink to the generations of warriors who fought and served and thus made it possible that we are here now. We drink to our fathers and grandfathers, who did their soldiering well.' The second toast is 'to those who serve now,' or to put it more eloquently 'to those who serve with us now, but are not around the table at the moment. We drink to those who right now are out in the minefields, on maneuvers, and performing combat tasks and their duty.' The third toast (while standing) is to fallen comrades or 'to those who are gone forever from the battlefield, those who sacrificed their lives.' The words 'the third toast' is spoken and there is no clinking of glasses or speeches, only silence as each officer bows his head and remembers for him or herself the meaning of those words. The fourth toast is to the ladies. In fact, every third toast thereafter is to the ladies. With 200 grams of vodka in your stomach at this point (50 grams a shot), the remaining toasts (and there are no limits on the number) give way to greater creativity embracing an entire host of issues." (p. 26)

"Drinking vodka is also associated with promotions and holidays. Promotions are especially noteworthy as a drinking tradition. When promoted, an officer is handed a glass of vodka with the new rank lying at the bottom of the glass. The officer must drink the vodka, catch the rank in his teeth, and without touching it, gently spit it out on his epaulet. If it falls off, he has to perform the process (to include the drinking!) all over again." (p. 26) [Note: My last promotion ceremony was held while airborne on a Russian state aircraft. I was informed of the tradition, but thankfully, I was spared from having to follow it.]

[Pavel Stepanovich Nakhimov] "Nakhimov stressed personal example and often gave orders from the most open and dangerous spots. He noted 'of the three ways to influence subordinates - reward, fear, and example - the last is the most sure.' He felt that example inspired confidence in subordinates and that he then did not have to micromanage people - they would show initiative on their own." (p. 33) (sounds remarkably like a quote attributed to General George S. Patton Jr.: "Don't tell people how to do things. Tell them what to do and let them surprise you with their results.")

"Another tradition is extreme tenacity in defensive positions. Tenacity was best exhibited in World War II during the German sieges of Leningrad and Stalingrad. Russian fanatics defended these two Russian cities in a manner that proved tenacity to be a national trait. Russians do not give up. Tenacity, perseverance and valor in battle, and sacrifice all carry on the Russian tradition of mass heroism (and not heroism as understood in the West, which is more like individual heroism or an exception to the rule.)" (p. 48)

"Perhaps most important, many Russian experts believe that the era of U.S. domination is over and that the world is returning to great power rivalries and the consequent struggle for influence." (p. 102)

"...the objective of reflexive control is to force an enemy into making objective decisions that lead to his defeat by influencing or controlling his decision-making process. Ionov considers this a form of high art founded of necessity on an intimate knowledge of human thinking and psychology, military history, the roots of the particular conflict, and the capabilities of competing combat assets." (p. 125) [sounds an awful lot like the US Air Force OODA Loop]

[President (at the time) Medvedev] "Today's computer is a weapon, which is of no smaller importance than a rifle or a tank. To be serious, a computer is more important." (p. 137)

"IW [Information Warfare] lessons learned were: future wars will be defined by who wins the IW; clarity and consistency are more important than ever; low-intensity conflict make the war and peace distinction less meaningful; facts on the ground matter since they create limits as to what can reasonably be claimed; and the explosive growth of personal media may make controlling messages almost impossible and the conduct of IW more difficult and important than ever." (pp. 324-325) ...more

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