The Kremlin’s policy of sending hundreds of thousands of Russian men, including many prisoners, to war in Ukraine with little to no training or equipment has had predictable effects back on the home front: numerous soldiers have committed violent crimes upon returning home, and the country reportedly has a critical shortage of psychologists trained to treat PTSD.
The Russian authorities have been reluctant to criticize these veterans, with Putin calling for them to become the country’s “new elite.” But according to inside sources, the Putin’s team is well aware of the risks the returnees pose and fears Russian society isn’t prepared to accept them.
Putins call for them to become the new elite kind of illuminates a fucked up aspect of societies where mental health support is lacking and war veterans are preferred for higher offices.
Basically it benefits the types of people who can witness the horrors of war and come back somewhat unaffected/unscared from it. I’m sure there’s also compassionate people who manage to come back and work through their trauma, but it’s an uphill battle and one hell of a selection mechanism.
Not only a reflection on contemporary Russia, I think it might have had a pretty solid impact on a lot of societies throughout history. No wonder compassionate leaders are historically few and far between.
He needs more people for the front, he is not going to say anything bad about them.