Negotiating with Russians

I Believe · Apr 22, 2025 · 17m

Before we get started, a personal note. Last week, “I Believe” broke into Apple Podcasts’ Top 10 in philosophy.The show would go on out of conviction alone, but your encouragement makes the work lighter. Thank you for listening, thinking, and being here.And in the words of Bill Belichick, “We're on to Cincinnati.”Part 1. The Broken Oath and How the Mongols Deceived the Rus’ Princes(Sound of galloping horses fades slightly into the background, replaced by a more narrative, almost hushed tone)Imagine the vast, open grassland steppe. For centuries, the scattered principalities of Rus’ fought…