scotoma

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Posts by scotoma

• 
  6

  Who is like the Wild Beast (Russia) and who can do battle with it? Rev 13:3,4

  by scotoma in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  continuing my posting to the blind, deaf, & conventionally minded ... you may be out of the jw's but you are still thinking in a box.. now that russia is back it is clear why powerful countries are wary of doing battle with it.

  putin is getting his way.. sorry, ukraine, you can't beat putin - bloomberg view.

  jan 28, 2015 - ... restrain russia's incursions into ukraine, but they can't defeat putin.

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  scotoma

  The Searcher

  Rev 13:7

  "And there was granted it (Wild Beast/Russia) to wage war with the holy ones and conquer them"
• 
  6

  Who is like the Wild Beast (Russia) and who can do battle with it? Rev 13:3,4

  by scotoma in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  continuing my posting to the blind, deaf, & conventionally minded ... you may be out of the jw's but you are still thinking in a box.. now that russia is back it is clear why powerful countries are wary of doing battle with it.

  putin is getting his way.. sorry, ukraine, you can't beat putin - bloomberg view.

  jan 28, 2015 - ... restrain russia's incursions into ukraine, but they can't defeat putin.

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  scotoma

  Continuing my posting to the blind, deaf, & conventionally minded ... You may be out of the JW's but you are still thinking in a box.

  Now that Russia is back it is clear why powerful countries are wary of doing battle with it. Putin is getting his way.

  Sorry, Ukraine, You Can't Beat Putin - Bloomberg View

  www.bloombergview.com/articles/.../sorry-ukraine-you-can-t-beat-putin

  Jan 28, 2015 - ... restrain Russia's incursions into Ukraine, but they can't defeat Putin. ... that

  Ukraine's military simply isn't capable of standing up to Russian ...

  No one will defeat Russia militarily: Putin in state of the ...

  www.firstpost.com › World News

  The First Post

  Dec 4, 2014 - Moscow:>Moscow: Russian President Vladimir Putin in his annual speech on

  Thursday defended the Kremlin's aggressive foreign policy, ...

  Don't Arm Ukraine - NYTimes.com

  www.nytimes.com/2015/02/.../dont-arm-ukraine.htmlThe New York Times

  Feb 8, 2015 - The key to success, they maintain, is not to defeat Russia militarily, but to raise the

  costs of fighting to the point where Mr. Putin will cave.

  Upping the ante in Ukraine also risks unwanted escalation. Not only would the fighting in eastern

  Ukraine be sure to intensify, but it could also spread to other areas. The consequences for

  Ukraine, which already faces profound economic and social problems, would be disastrous.

  The possibility that Mr. Putin might end up making nuclear threats may seem remote, but if the

  goal of arming Ukraine is to drive up the costs of Russian interference and eventually put

  Moscow in an acute situation, it cannot be ruled out. If Western pressure succeeded and Mr.

  Putin felt desperate, he would have a powerful incentive to try to rescue the situation by rattling

  the nuclear saber.

  Our understanding of the mechanisms of escalation in crises and war is limited at best, although

  we know the risks are considerable. Pushing a nuclear-armed Russia into a corner would be

  playing with fire.

  EXCLUSIVE-NATO Russia Expert: Why Putin Can Win ...

  www.breitbart.com/.../exclusive-nato-russia-expert-putin-can-wi...

  Breitbart

  Apr 23, 2014 - All the states on the periphery of the Russia Federation are now very ... This is a

  superb guide to how to defeat a nation that is militarily much ...

  ...Breitbart News: Is the inadequacy of the West’s response just a function of ignorance of

  Russia?

  Donnelly: No. It’s deeper. We do not understand Putin’s way of war. We don’t even have the

  right vocabulary to describe it. To our citizens, war is “Saving Private Ryan”. That’s not Putin’s

  way of war. Russia was a military superpower, but it was also masterful at the indirect,

  non-kinetic way of war. See the book Unrestricted Warfare authored by two colonels in the

  Chinese army. This is a superb guide to how to defeat a nation that is militarily much more

  powerful than you. It lists all the various ways you can undermine a strong Western nation

  without firing a shot: the use of economics, the NGO sector, sympathetic members of your ethnic

  diaspora, or space and the cyber domain. Russia has honed this mode of war since the fall of the

  Soviet Union and used it in Georgia and now Ukraine and its neighboring nations.

  Breitbart News: Russia today has an economy the size of California, or the Republic of France.

  Could they win this war?

  Donnelly: Vladimir Putin is a long-term strategic thinker whose goal is to rebuild Russia’s

  greatness, and he has a natural advantage. It is relatively easy to defeat an adversary who does not

  have a game plan, even if they are stronger than you. You may have a PhD and an IQ of 160, but

  if you’ve never played chess before and have never heard of the Fool’s Mate stratagem, a child

  can defeat you with it in two moves.

  Also, you hear the constant refrain, such that “Russia would never do X because it has too much

  to lose.” This betrays a complete misunderstanding of the difference between the strategic culture

  of Russia and the culture of our politicians. The winner may quite simply be the side that is more

  prepared to take losses. That is definitely not us. “

  The influential new report urging Obama to arm Ukraine ...

  www.vox.com/2015/2/3/7967533/ukraine-weapons-report-obama

  Feb 3, 2015 - It warns that no military assistance from the US would allow the Ukraine to

  actually defeat Russia in a direct conflict. "Even with enormous ...

  There is little question that it would help Ukraine militarily if the US provided this kind of

  assistance. During a war, after all, weapons and equipment come in handy. But what that would

  do to Russia's incentives is less clear. Would US weapons make the war more costly for

  Moscow? Or would increased US assistance provide an opportunity for Russia to become more

  openly involved in the conflict, and thus increase its control over the situation? The former result

  could, as the report argues, help force Putin to a compromise. But the latter result could have the

  opposite effect from what the report's authors intend.

  Top NATO general warns of Russian reaction to arming ...

  www.cnsnews.com/.../top-nato-general-warns-rus...

  Cybercast News Service

  Feb 5, 2015 - He and other U.S. leaders insist there is no military solution to the conflict, ..... You

  say, ""he explains that to defeat Russia militarily we must first ..

  In a newspaper interview, German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen said giving the

  Ukrainians arms to help them defend themselves could have unintended and fateful

  consequences.

  "Weapons deliveries would be a fire accelerant," von der Leyen was quoted as telling the

  Sueddeutsche Zeitung daily. "And it could give the Kremlin the excuse to openly intervene in

  this conflict."
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  2

  Another Wild Beast...had two horns like a lamb but it began speaking as a dragon. USSR emergence as a lamb but...

  by scotoma in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  did you forget about the optimism when the soviet union died.

  free markets.

  american ally in war on terrorism.

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  scotoma

  Did you forget about the optimism when the Soviet Union Died. Free markets. American ally in war on terrorism. Death of communism. Constitutional Democracy.

  Journal of Eurasian Studies

  Volume 2, Issue 1, January 2011, Pages 40–51

  The failure of democratization in Russia: A comparative perspective

  Alfred B. Evans

  Russia is by far the largest of the former republics of the USSR in both population and land area;
  

  indeed, it is the largest country in the world in terms of territory. In addition, its geographical

  location gives it influence on issues in several regions in which the USA is interested, and it has

  greater strategic military capability than any other country except the United States. On a deeper

  level, psychologically, as the main successor of Soviet Union, Russia represents the core of the

  former superpower that had been the main geopolitical and ideological rival of the USA from the

  late 1940s until the early 1990s. If the state that had been the core of the superpower that was the

  main adversary of democracy could, within a relatively short time, be changed into an ideological

  soul mate of our country, the symbolic implications would be profound.

  And yet, as the current decade nears its end, the consensus of scholarly analyses and popular
  

  perceptions in the West indicates that, if Russia did enter a transition to democracy, that

  transition was not successful. From the point of view of those in the United States and Western

  Europe who had high hopes for the spread of democracy, the most important test case for

  democratization was largely a disappointment.

  And yet, as the current decade nears its end, the consensus of scholarly analyses and popular
  

  perceptions in the West indicates that, if Russia did enter a transition to democracy, that

  transition was not successful. From the point of view of those in the United States and Western

  Europe who had high hopes for the spread of democracy, the most important test case for

  democratization was largely a disappointment.3 During the 1990s, while Boris Yeltsin was the

  president of Russia, most Western academic specialists regarded that country as a democracy that

  was in an early stage of transition, with some imperfections that did not negate the fundamentally

  democratic character of the political regime. Within a few years after Vladimir Putin became the

  president of that country, however, the assessment of that regime by most political scientists

  specializing in the study Russia changed. Between 2000 and 2005 the outlook of Russia watchers

  in the West shifted, so that many began to refer to the political system of that country as

  authoritarian (Hahn, 2004 and McFaul, 2004). Stephen Whitefield has noted that during Putin’s

  time as president of Russia, there was an “increasing consensus among scholars, journalists, and

  policy-makers in the West” that Russian politics had moved “significantly off a democratic

  pathway” (Whitefield, 2009, 93).

  Russia’s Transition to Democracy and U.S.-Russia Relations: Unfinished Business
  

  Michael McFaul Testimony September 30, 2003 Carnegie

  Read more at:

  http://carnegieendowment.org/2003/09/30/russia-s-transition-to-democracy-and-u.s.-russia-relati

  ons-unfinished-business

  The probability of a resurgence of a new Russian empire is low. To be sure, Russian President
  

  Putin seeks to expand Russian influence throughout the territory of the former Soviet Union. Just

  last week in a meeting of heads of state from the region, he called for the creation of an economic

  union between the major states that emerged after the collapse of the Soviet Union. As the largest

  economy and most powerful military power in the region, there should be no doubt that Russia

  will continue to exercise influence in its neighborhood. A democratic Russia, though, will not

  seek to acquire new territory through the exercise of military force. This threat only becomes real

  if a dictator returns to the Kremlin.

  Today in Russia, the debate about capitalism and communism is over. Even the Communist Party
  

  of the Russian Federation (CPRF) now accepts the legitimacy of private property and markets.

  Just as Republicans and Democrats in this chamber debate about how best stimulate and regulate

  the American economy, communists and liberal continue to debate what kind of capitalism

  Russian should develop. And what has taken shape so far in Russia is still not what most in the

  West would recognize as a market economy. Nonetheless, the trajectory is in the right direction.

  Moreover, since becoming president, Putin has done much to accelerate Russian economic
  

  reform. His first major economic reform was the introduction of a flat income tax of 13 percent,

  a new code, which has raised revenues.

  Throughout most of the 1990s, a major issues of every Russian-American summit was how much
  

  Yeltsin was going to ask from the I.M.F. this time around. During Putin’s visit to Camp David

  last week, I.M.F. loans, requests for debt relief, or pleas for other forms of financial assistance

  were not on the agenda.

  Putin and his foreign policy team are still suspicious of American intentions and worried about
  

  American hegemonic power. Rather than build alliances to try to balance this power, however,

  Putin has decided to move Russia closer to the West and closer to the United States in particular,

  since he sees Russia’s national interests as best served through partnership, not rivalry, with the

  West. On some issues areas, such as the war on terrorism, Putin has even called the United States

  an “ally” of Russia. As Putin stated on September 27, 2003, in his remarks after the summit at

  Camp David held last weekend, the “fight against terrorism continues to be among priorities of

  our cooperation. I agree with the assessment that the President of the United States has just

  given. In this sphere, we act not only as strategic partners, but as allies.”

  Of the big agenda items from the 1990s in Russian reform and Russian foreign policy, only one
  

  remains – the future of the Russian political system. The empire is gone and will never come

  back. Russia is a market economy and will never return to a command economy. The future of

  Russian democracy, however, is much more uncertain. If Russia fails to consolidate a democratic

  regime, the current pro-Western orientation in Russian foreign policy could also change over

  time.

  So long as unreconstructed communists ruled there, the USSR represented a unique threat to
  

  American security. When the communist regime disintegrated and a new democratically oriented

  regime began to take hold in Russia, this threat to the United States diminished almost overnight.

  NOTE: If you don't read all the infor and links you simply won't get it.
• 
  11

  ... and three kings he will humiliate...Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine

  by scotoma in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  why ukraine, georgia and moldova should choose the eu ...www.forbes.com/.../why-ukraine-georgia-and-moldova-should-ch...forbe.

  oct 13, 2014 - by vasil jaiani - despite the risk, ukraine, georgia and moldova are still ...russia has been fiercely opposing integration of the former soviet ...russia's punitive trade policy measures towards ukraine ...www.ceps.eu/.../russias-punitive-trade-policy-measures-towards-ukraine.... sep 25, 2014 - russia's punitive trade policy measures towards ukraine, moldova and georgia.if you don't have adobe reader, you can download it here.eu signs pacts with ukraine, georgia and moldova - bbc.comwww.bbc.com/.../world-europe-280526...british broadcasting corporation.

  jun 27, 2014 - ukraine, georgia and moldova have signed partnership agreements with theeuropean union, in a move strongly opposed by russia.

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  scotoma

  wizzstick

  Don't ridicule. Read the links. The problem with most people is they can't conceive of prophecy without a supernatural being directing it all.

  Another problem is our intrinsic optimism. We have a truce with death. We know we are going to die and that all life narratives end in some kind of existential tragedy. However, we still have to live this day, so, we put the tragic into the background.

  Who wants to spend creative energy trying to figure out the future? Practically no one.

  It is easier to ridicule.

  While god may be an impossible/imaginary person there is still more to this universe than humans.

  There is the probability of extra-human sources of prophecy besides the stories of ancient Gods.

  If you believe in evolution you have all the more reason to think of the possibility that in many places (100 billion stars x 100 billion galaxies) intelligent life has emerged.

  If you are exceptionally creative and have intense curiosity you will look everywhere for clues - even clues in books that claimed to be from sky messengers.

  This isn't any crazier than SETI , or the theories of time and energy of cosmologists.

  If you stay in the MBA accountant mental state you will never figure out what's going on.
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  11

  ... and three kings he will humiliate...Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine

  by scotoma in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  why ukraine, georgia and moldova should choose the eu ...www.forbes.com/.../why-ukraine-georgia-and-moldova-should-ch...forbe.

  oct 13, 2014 - by vasil jaiani - despite the risk, ukraine, georgia and moldova are still ...russia has been fiercely opposing integration of the former soviet ...russia's punitive trade policy measures towards ukraine ...www.ceps.eu/.../russias-punitive-trade-policy-measures-towards-ukraine.... sep 25, 2014 - russia's punitive trade policy measures towards ukraine, moldova and georgia.if you don't have adobe reader, you can download it here.eu signs pacts with ukraine, georgia and moldova - bbc.comwww.bbc.com/.../world-europe-280526...british broadcasting corporation.

  jun 27, 2014 - ukraine, georgia and moldova have signed partnership agreements with theeuropean union, in a move strongly opposed by russia.

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  scotoma

  DJS

  Obsiously I had a change of plans.

  Go back to your box.
• 
  11

  ... and three kings he will humiliate...Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine

  by scotoma in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  why ukraine, georgia and moldova should choose the eu ...www.forbes.com/.../why-ukraine-georgia-and-moldova-should-ch...forbe.

  oct 13, 2014 - by vasil jaiani - despite the risk, ukraine, georgia and moldova are still ...russia has been fiercely opposing integration of the former soviet ...russia's punitive trade policy measures towards ukraine ...www.ceps.eu/.../russias-punitive-trade-policy-measures-towards-ukraine.... sep 25, 2014 - russia's punitive trade policy measures towards ukraine, moldova and georgia.if you don't have adobe reader, you can download it here.eu signs pacts with ukraine, georgia and moldova - bbc.comwww.bbc.com/.../world-europe-280526...british broadcasting corporation.

  jun 27, 2014 - ukraine, georgia and moldova have signed partnership agreements with theeuropean union, in a move strongly opposed by russia.

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  scotoma

  Why Ukraine, Georgia And Moldova Should Choose The EU ...www.forbes.com/.../why-ukraine-georgia-and-moldova-should-ch...Forbe

  Oct 13, 2014 - BY VASIL JAIANI - Despite the risk, Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova are still ...Russia has been fiercely opposing integration of the former Soviet ...Russia's Punitive Trade Policy Measures towards Ukraine ...www.ceps.eu/.../russia’s-punitive-trade-policy-measures-towards-ukraine...

  Sep 25, 2014 - Russia's Punitive Trade Policy Measures towards Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia.If you don't have Adobe Reader, you can download it here.EU signs pacts with Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova - BBC.comwww.bbc.com/.../world-europe-280526...British Broadcasting Corporation
  

  Jun 27, 2014 - Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova have signed partnership agreements with theEuropean Union, in a move strongly opposed by Russia. The pact ...Guide to the EU deals with Georgia, Moldova and Ukrainewww.bbc.com/.../world-europe-280387...British Broadcasting Corporation
  

  Jun 27, 2014 - The European Union and three of Russia's neighbors signed sweepingtrade-and-political agreements, pushing the bloc's influence eastward ...Merkel: Russia Obstructing Moldova, Georgia, Ukraine ...sputniknews.com/politics/20141207/1015582117.html
  

  Dec 7, 2014 - Merkel stated that Russia is creating obstacles forMoldova, Georgia and Ukraine to fulfill association with EU.Explainer: What EU Accords Mean For Ukraine, Georgia ...www.rferl.org/.../ukraine-georgia-mold...Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
  

  Jun 26, 2014 - What accords are Ukraine, Georgia, and Moldova signing with Brussels? .... Some12 percent of Moldova's exports go to Russia and Moscow ...Ukraine, Moldova, And Georgia Sign EU Accordswww.rferl.org/.../ukraine-moldova-geo...Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
  

  Jun 27, 2014 - Ukraine, Georgia, and Moldova have signed key economic and ... In March, the EU and Kyiv signed an Association Agreement after Russia's ...For Ukraine, Moldova, and Georgia Free Trade with Europe ...carnegie.ru/eurasiaoutlook/?fa=56074
  

  Jul 3, 2014 - Ukraine's, Moldova's, and Georgia's choice of European integration is bound to complicate further their relations with Russia. Both, Russia and ...
  
  

  Jun 25, 2014 - Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia are facing intense pressure ahead of the deal'ssigning, including threats of export bans and tightened ...Ukraine and EU sign free trade zone deal — RT Businessrt.com/business/168824-ukraine-eu-free-trade/RT
  

  Jun 27, 2014 - “It is their sovereign right, but the Russian Federation will have to take ...Ukraine, Moldova, and Georgia have followed Poland's example, ...Russia's Punitive Trade Policy Measures Towards Ukraine ...ssrn.com/abstract=2507195Social Science Research Networkby D Cenusa - ?2014 - ?Cited by 1
  

  Jun 27, 2014 - Putin advisor labels Petro Poroshenko, the president of Ukraine, a 'Nazi' forsigning ... The leaders of Georgia and Moldova also put pens to EU ...With Ukraine under siege, Georgia and Moldova double downamerica.aljazeera.com/.../georgia-moldova-commiteuropeukrai...Al Jazeera
  

  Mar 4, 2014 - On Feb. 22, as Ukraine politicians voted to remove their Kremlin-friendlypresident, a roaring crowd in another nation took on their Russian foe.Russia's Punitive Trade Policy Measures Towards Ukraine ...www.isn.ethz.ch/Digital-Library/Publications/Detail/?ots591...This paper examines the trade policy restrictions and embargoes that were imposed by Russia on Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia in response to the sanctions ...US-NATO Preparing for War Against Russia: Holding ...www.globalresearch.ca/...russia...georgia-moldova-ukraine/5434760
  

  Mar 4, 2015 - US-NATO Preparing for War Against Russia: Holding Largest Arctic War Gamesin Decade; Training and Arming Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine.Moldova might face Russia's aggression after Georgia and ...mw.ua/.../moldova-might-face-russia-s-aggression-after-georgia-and-ukr...
  

  Feb 24, 2015 - Moldova might face Russia's aggression after Georgia and Ukraine. ... forMoldova on a background of Russian aggression against Ukraine.
  As for the ten horns, out of that kingdom there are ten kings that will rise up; and still another one will rise up after them and he himself will be different from the first ones, and three kings he will humble. Dan 7:24
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  26

  Please help me figure out my dreams

  by Socrateswannabe in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  hi everyone, this may be the stupidest post ever.

  i am stumped for an answer and would love to hear your opinions, though.

  every week or two for the last couple of years, i have a dream--or at least that's what i'm calling it--that consists of me waking up or thinking that i've waked up, and seeing the ceiling of my darkened bedroom filled with algebraic equations.

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  scotoma

  Are you ignoring something like the need to do your taxes?

  Or are you in whirl of activity and don't have time to do something complicated?
• 
  26

  Are the USA and Russia the key actors in end time prophecy?

  by scotoma in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  what's the problem with prophecy?prophecy primarily requires a pattern recognition or insightful strategy not an analytical strategy.

  prophecy rarely gives names whether of empires or their rulers.

  even the name of the messiah - yeshua -wasn't foretold.

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  scotoma

  Cofty,

  You can go to bed now. I don't plan on writing anymore about prophecy. If anyone has a real interest they can message me.

  Sorry for boring everyone.
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  26

  Are the USA and Russia the key actors in end time prophecy?

  by scotoma in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  what's the problem with prophecy?prophecy primarily requires a pattern recognition or insightful strategy not an analytical strategy.

  prophecy rarely gives names whether of empires or their rulers.

  even the name of the messiah - yeshua -wasn't foretold.

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  scotoma

  Viviane,

  I wanted to establish that prophecy is ambiguous until it needs to be understood. Eventually it will be interpreted correctly and it will be understood by everyone.

  There is exactly zero evidence of that happening. What is your basis for reasoning on this?

  It's one of the rules for the prophecy game. If you want to play the game you have to accept the rules.

  Daniel 8:26,27 "Keep secret the vision because it is yet for many days"..."I kept showing myself numbed on account of of the thing seen and there was nobody understanding it."

  Daniel 12:4 "And as for you, O daniel make secret the words and seal up the book until the time of the end. Many will rove about, and the true knowledge will become abundant." NWT

  Many will go here and there to increase knowledge.” NIV

  many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased. American King James

  seal the book to the time of the end; until many are taught, and knowledge is increased.Brenton Septuagint

  Many will travel everywhere, and knowledge will grow. God's Word Translation

  the scriptures ISR (1998)

  I could list more versions but they all seem to indicate that understanding will emerge from an increase of knowledge.

  Daniel 12:8 Now as for me, I heard, but I could not understand.

  Do you detect any ambiguity in these statements?

  In contrast the prophecy of Revelation is quite different. Revelation 22:10 gives opposite instructions:

  "Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this scroll for the appointed time is near"

  Well here we are 2000 years later. It is possible to explain this contrast by special pleading to make sense out of it but, at the very least believing that the end is close would strengthen Christians as they faced the trials that would befall them in the first century and for however long they would need to endure.

  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
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  26

  Are the USA and Russia the key actors in end time prophecy?

  by scotoma in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  what's the problem with prophecy?prophecy primarily requires a pattern recognition or insightful strategy not an analytical strategy.

  prophecy rarely gives names whether of empires or their rulers.

  even the name of the messiah - yeshua -wasn't foretold.

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  scotoma

  My initial comments were meant to serve as a prelude to what I want to say about end time prophesies. I apologize for a couple poorly structured sentences. I wanted to establish that prophecy is ambiguous until it needs to be understood. Eventually it will be interpreted correctly and it will be understood by everyone. The matching game is not all there is to prophecy. The prophecy about the end has the purpose of generating certain behaviors. The prophecy isn't about sitting on a roof waiting to be levitated. It's about flight for survival. Physical flight. It is a time where those who believe will be able to say with confidence "This is it!"
  
  All the end time prophesies have a very obvious thing in common. The prophesies specifically talk about the succession of specific powers with a western vector. Each power achieves it's ascendency by conquering the previous power. This goes on until the last power is replaced "without human hands". "Without human hands" is mentioned twice referring to the rock that strikes the feet of the immense image. The destruction of the stern-faced king at Daniel 8:23 is accomplished "not by human power". The beast of Daniel 7 meets its end when some heavenly court rules against it and it is burned with fire. After the King of the North successfully brings an end to the King of the South he is destroyed by Michael the great prince. Revelation follows a similar pattern. The last contestants for domination are the Wild Beast and Babylon The Great. Babylon the Great is destroyed by the Wild Beast but the Wild Beast is tossed into the fire by heavenly entities.
  
  The chain of dominating powers doesn't go on forever. There are only four powers mentioned by Daniel. Babylon, Persia, Greece and Rome. There is an extension of the 4th metal - iron in the feet and toes. This suggests an interesting development. The feet and toes are not a totally new empire but a continuation of the iron legs. The Watchtower makes a mistake in thinking that the Anglo-American empire is a continuation of the Roman empire. The Roman empire didn't end with the fall of Rome. The Byzantine empire centered in the densely populated Eastern Mediterranean was the continuation of the Roman Empire. When the second Rome (Constantinople) fell in 1453 the Russians claimed to be the inheritor of the Roman empire. Look up the Third Rome Concept. There is plenty of research on the internet. Also look up Russian Messianism.
  
  There has been some speculation about what the clay and iron mixture represents. The full understanding of this is quite clear when you do research on the "nationalities" problem in Russia. There are numerous books and articles about how Russia has had to accommodate over 100 distinct nationalities. I could give hundreds of links about this and no one will go through the bother of looking up reading and digesting the information. So here is at least one link that I have snipped on the subject of Russia's Nationality problem.
  
  http://trotsky1917.blogspot.com/2011/08/21-problem-of-nationalities.html
  
  Lenin on the National Question
  "Whatever may be the further destiny of the Soviet Union … the national policy of Lenin will find its place among the eternal treasures of mankind" (14).
  
  This conclusion to Trotsky's chapter on ‘the problem of nationalities' shows how highly he valued Lenin's approach to the National Question – not just for the Russian Revolution but for the international revolution as a whole.
  
  Trotsky explains:"Russia was formed not as a national state, but as a state made up of nationalities. This corresponded to its belated character. On a foundation of extensive agriculture and home industry commercial capital developed not deeply, not by transforming production, but broadly, by increasing the radius of its operation" (15).
  
  "To the seventy million Great Russians … there were gradually added about ninety million ‘outlanders' … sharply divided into two groups: the western peoples excelling Russia in their culture, and the eastern standing on a lower level. The vast numbers of these nationalities deprived of rights, and the sharpness of their deprivation, gave to the national problem in Russia a gigantic explosive force" (16).
  
  This amalgam of nationalities meant that a bourgeois revolution in Russia, instead of forging national unity as in countries like Italy and Germany, would tend to pull the different nationalities apart.
  
  "Lenin early learned the inevitability of this development of centrifugal national movements in Russia, and for many years stubbornly fought … for that famous paragraph 9 of the old party programme which formulated the right of nations to self-determination – that is, to complete separation as states. Only in this way could the Russian proletariat gradually win the confidence of the oppressed nationalities " (17).
  
  Remember the image is struck by a stone on it's feet of clay/iron and it is at that point that world empire's are dissolved making room for the stone that evolves into a large mountain and fills the entire earth.
  
  So there you have it. Russia is the last empire after it gains control over the whole earth.
  
  Part of the Roman iron like strength is in Russia but it doesn't hold together. It has become mixed with clay - the offspring of mankind.
  
  Next I will deal with the 7th chapter of Daniel and the dream of 4 beasts.