Is this Russia’s 4-Step long-game to destabilize the U.S.A.?

This article is a bit afield from my normal focus, but it just begs to be shared. Life is, after all, integrated.

I have been a systems thinker for 50 years — a big picture guy. Think of me as a fish that has a deep interest in the water we are swimming in. With a long view of evolutionary history, could it be that Russia has been methodically at work for decades, executing a 4-step process designed to subvert democracy? Read along, and watch and listen along. Then, decide for yourself.

Russia’s subversive strategy in brief.

In the 1980s, a former KGB propagandist named Yuri Bezmenov outlined the Russian strategy for undermining a democratic society through a 4-step process of subversion. Here it is, applied to us.

1. Demoralization of the people of the U.S.A., which takes about 20 years to achieve.
2. Destabilization of our culture and systems, which takes about 2 to 5 years.
3. Crisis and upheaval, which takes a couple months or so.
4. Normalization of a new status quo.

This subversion strategy in more detail.

My inbox this morning had an newsletter from Gil Durham and George Lakoff. I have a great appreciation for Lakoff’s work at Framelab, and have subscribed for a few years since reading his 2004 book, Don’t Think of an Elephant!: Know Your Values and Frame the Debate — The Essential Guide for Progressives.

I read Dunam and Lakoff’s February 29, 2024 article with great fascination. Here is the title: Putin failed to conquer Navalny or Ukraine — He’s had better luck with Trump’s GOP.

In the article, reference is made to yet another article published in Big Think, first in July of 2018 and then updated in January of 2023.

The first half of the Dunam and Lakhoff article presents some data to support their thesis. The second part, however, is what really grabbed me.

This morning I was reading a believable overarching framework for understanding what is happening to us in the U.S.A.

Here is the water we are swimming in.

The 4-step subversive strategy identified by Yuri Bezmenov is presented below. More about Bezmenov follows. I copied and pasted these 4-steps right from the Duran and Lakoff article.

1. Demoralization: This phase involves the long-term process of demoralizing the target nation. Tactics include the infiltration of, and influence on, the target nation’s educational system, media, politics, and culture. The aim: to alter the population’s perceptions of reality, creating a generation of citizens who are unable to recognize or resist the subverter’s ideology or objectives.

2. Destabilization: In this stage, the focus shifts to creating instability. This can be done through the manipulation of the target nation’s economy, politics, and society. Strategies include sowing discord, social unrest and polarization, usually by exploiting existing divisions. This phase might involve supporting radical groups, spreading disinformation, and undermining trust in the government and institutions.

3. Crisis: This stage is characterized by a significant upheaval or crisis that leads to a state of emergency or a situation that destabilizes society to a critical point. The crisis could take various forms, including economic collapses, riots, or significant political upheavals, leading to a high uncertainty and fear among the population.

4. Normalization: After the crisis, the stage of normalization begins, where the subverter seeks to establish a new status quo. This often involves the implementation of policies and measures that solidify the subverter’s control or influence over society, supposedly to restore order. The subverter’s power and the oppressive new conditions become “normal.”

The overarching objective of these tactics is to weaken a society from within, making it vulnerable to influence or control without a direct military confrontation. Bezmenov emphasized that success depends on the subverter’s ability to keep the society in the dark about the manipulation process until it’s too late.

Who is Yuri Bezmenov’s, you ask?

You can read a bit of his story in the Hungarian Conservative, July 14, 2022, and in a Wikipedia article.

KGB, defected, exiled to Canada, married and divorced, an alcoholic, a radio commentator…and then at the age of 53, in January of 1993 he died… suddenly after death threats from the Kremlin, reportedly of a massive heart attack.

Here is the Youtube video that has been watched more than 2 million times. Tap the link, or watch below. It is 13:30 long, and jaw dropping.

Bezmenov is being interviewed by Edward Griffin, who himself has a history full of conspiracy theories. Apparently, mainstream media wouldn’t give Bezmenov much air time. Set Griffin aside, and listen to Bezmenov’s 4-steps and wonder out loud with friends… “Is this happening to us?”

So what are we to do with all of this?

First, enlarge your perspective by paying attention to the water you are swimming in.

Second, share this info and your wonderments with friends and family. Engage in deep dialogue around their perspectives, and yours.

Third, your response will depend upon the water in which you swim. What is your worldview? Pre-modern, Modern, Post-Modern, or Integral? I’ll write more about how each might respond and resist this Russian strategy in future articles.

Fourth, wonder, or do some research, about what WE have done, and are doing to destabilize other nations. Remember Newton’s Third Law of Motion: that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.

Fifth, will the post-election period be our time of destabilization as predicted, no matter who wins in November of 2024?

Sixth, remember the price that has been paid by patriots here in the U.S.A. to protect democracy. Read some history. Watch Band of Brothers on Netflix. Do not ever forget the Declaration of Independence.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

And remember Benjamin Franklin’s response to this question upon the signing of the United States Constitution:

“Well, Doctor, what have we got, a republic or a monarchy?”

“A republic, if you can keep it.”

Thank you for reading along.

I write about organized common sense that is meant to edify. My personal mission in life is to explore, map, and guide people to the KIN-dom of Heaven. Follow me on Medium, or subscribe and get an email whenever I publish.

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After all, we are in this together.